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Melena is a form of blood in stool which refers to the dark black, tarry feces that are commonly associated with upper gastrointestinal bleeding. [1] The black color and characteristic strong odor are caused by hemoglobin in the blood being altered by digestive enzymes and intestinal bacteria.
A persistent (chronic) history of diarrhea, with watery or mushy, unformed stools, (types 6 and 7 on the Bristol stool scale), sometimes with steatorrhea, increased frequency and urgency of defecation are common manifestations, often with fecal incontinence and other gastrointestinal symptoms such as abdominal swelling, bloating and abdominal pain.
A number of foods and medications can turn the stool either red or black in the absence of bleeding. [2] Bismuth found in many antacids may turn stools black as may activated charcoal. [2] Blood from the vagina or urinary tract may also be confused with blood in the stool. [2]
Diarrhea is defined by the World Health Organization as having three or more loose or liquid stools per day, or as having more stools than is normal for that person. [ 2 ] Acute diarrhea is defined as an abnormally frequent discharge of semisolid or fluid fecal matter from the bowel, lasting less than 14 days, by World Gastroenterology ...
Blood in your stool or black or tarry stool (which may indicate cancer higher up in the colon and is more common among women, according to Mongiu) Abdominal pain, aches or cramps
Blood in stool looks different depending on how early it enters the digestive tract—and thus how much digestive action it has been exposed to—and how much there is. The term can refer either to melena, with a black appearance, typically originating from upper gastrointestinal bleeding; or to hematochezia, with a red color, typically originating from lower gastrointestinal bleeding. [6]
Children with loose stools and diarrhea (colonic hypermotility): This group of children has an overactive colon. Rapid transit of stool results in frequent episodes of diarrhea . This means that even when an enema cleans the colon rather easily, stool keeps on passing fairly quickly from the cecum to the descending colon and the anus.
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