This is the Year of Prevention and Maintenance. : Do You See Blood in Your Stool?

Health Tip - Blood in Your Stool?

Blood in your stool can be a sign that there is something seriously wrong.

Sometimes it is visible on toilet tissue or in the toilet after a bowel movement.

Sometimes the blood is so small that it can only be detected by a fecal occult test (a test to check for hidden blood in stool).

Blood in the stools can be bright red, dark or black.

What is Blood in Your Stool a Sign of?

Bleeding somewhere in your digestive tract. Blood that occurs higher up in the digestive tract may make stool appear black.

Associated Symptoms:

Abdominal pain
Vomiting
Weakness
Difficulty breathing
Diarrhea
Palpitations
Fainting
Weight loss depending on the cause, location, duration, and severity of the bleeding

Possible Causes of Blood in Your Stool?

Diverticular Disease - small pouches that project from the colon wall;
Hemorrhoids;
Colon Cancer;
Non-cancerous growths (polyps);
Intestinal infections (bacterial enterocolitis);
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn's disease, Ulcerative colitis);
Anal Fissure - a small cut or tear in the tissue lining the anus similar to the cracks in your lips or a paper cut;
Colitis - inflammation of the colon;
Angiodysplasia - a condition in which fragile, abnormal blood vessels lead to bleeding;
Peptic Ulcers - an open sore in the lining of the stomach or duodenum, the upper end of the intestine;
Polyps or Cancer - polyps are benign growths than can grow, bleed and become cancerous and often causes bleeding;
Esophageal Problems - varicose veins of the esophagus or tears.

Blood in Stool Diagnosis:

Nasogastric lavage - a test that may tell your doctor whether bleeding is in the upper or lower tract;
Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) - A procedure that involves inserting an endoscope tube with a small camera on the end to look for the source of bleeding ( through the mouth);
Colonoscopy - A similar procedure to the EGD except the scope is inserted through the rectum to view the colon;
Enteroscopy - A procedure similar to EGD and colonoscopy used to examine the small intestine, involves swallowing a capsule with a tiny camera to show images of the digestive tract;
Barium X-ray - A procedure that uses a contrast material called barium to make the digestive tract show up on an X-ray (swallowed or inserted into the rectum);
Radionuclide scanning - A procedure that involves injecting small amounts of radioactive material into a vein for a special camera to see images of the digestive tract;
Angiography - A procedure that involves injecting a special dye into a vein that makes blood visible on an X-ray or computerized tomography (CT) scan;
Laparotomy - A surgical procedure in which a doctor opens and examines the abdomen to identify the cause of bleeding.

How is Blood in Your Stool Treated?

Medications:

Antibiotics (treat H. pylori)
Anti-inflammatory drugs (treat colitis)

Endoscopy is used to insert chemicals into the site of bleeding;
Angiography- to inject medicine into the blood vessels to control bleeding;
Electric current or laser;
Clip to close the bleeding vessel;
Surgery (remove polyps);
Eat a high-fiber diet (relieve constipation);
Sitting in warm or hot baths (to relieve fissures).

There are also foods that can make the stool itself appear red or like it has streaks of blood in it (e.g. tomato soup or juice, excess beets, kool-aid, red popsicles or red gelatin).