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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.
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]
The presence of bright red blood in stool, known as hematochezia, typically indicates lower gastrointestinal bleeding. Digested blood from the upper gastrointestinal tract may appear black rather than red, resulting in "coffee ground" vomit or melena. [2] Other signs and symptoms include feeling tired, dizziness, and pale skin color. [18]
A complete blood count as well as an hemoglobin test should be performed when a patient presents symptoms of hematochezia. A colonoscopy may be necessary if there is suspicion of bleed from colon particularly in the elderly to look for the site and many causes of bleed like carcinoma, ulcerative colitis, rectal varices or other lesions and in certain instances upper gastrointestinal endoscopy ...
What causes lower left abdominal pain? Lower left abdominal pain can have many causes, ranging from minor to serious, says Andrew Boxer, M.D., gastroenterologist of Gastroenterology Associates of ...
A lower gastrointestinal bleed is defined as bleeding originating distal to the ileocecal valve, which includes the colon, rectum, and anus. [2] LGIB was previously defined as any bleed that occurs distal to the ligament of Treitz, which included the aforementioned parts of the intestine and also included the last 1/4 of the duodenum and the entire area of the jejunum and ileum. [1]
When there is dysfunction at this transitional joint, it can cause referred pain to the lower back, hip, abdominal, and/or groin/testicular/labia area, Dr. Megan Daley, PT, DPT, Cert Dn, CF-L1 ...
When proximal lower GI pathology is suspected, a colonoscopy needs to be performed. [7] If there is a significant amount of bleeding or the patient is too unstable to be put under anesthesia for an endoscopic procedure, CT angiography may be pursued. It could be challenging to pinpoint the precise location of the blood if there is a lot of ...