Individuals who experience rectal bleeding and severe edema or swelling need to promptly seek medical attention. Although this part of our anatomy is not the easiest to discuss, the potential life-threatening nature of rectal bleeding and severe edema must outweigh any sense of embarrassment. These symptoms are an indication that something is wrong.
Effects
The rectum, which is in the lower portion of the large bowel, transports waste to the anus. Moderate to severe rectal bleeding can lead to a significant loss of blood, resulting in weakness, dizziness, fainting and even shock.
Features
A number of diseases and conditions can cause rectal bleeding and severe edema. The most common causes include defects such as anal fissures and hemorrhoids, cancers and polyps of the rectum and colon, abnormal blood vessels and certain infections, side effects of medications, a condition known as diverticulitis and inflammatory intestinal disorders like Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and ulcerative proctitis.
Considerations
Finding the location and the cause of rectal bleeding and severe edema is vital in selecting the correct treatment. The diagnostic steps usually include compiling a patient's history, measuring vital signs such as blood pressure, examining the patient's abdomen and conducting an anal and rectal digital exam.
Additional diagnostic tests may be required. Colonoscopy is the most widely used method for evaluating rectal bleeding and severe edema. This procedure involves using a colonoscope--a flexible tube fitted with a miniature camera--to visibly inspect the anus, rectum and colon.
Prevention/Solution
Regardless of the cause of rectal bleeding and severe edema, initial treatment should focus on addressing a patient's loss of blood.
Once the patient is stabilized and the source of the rectal bleeding and severe edema is identified, treatments can range from providing relief of symptoms and the use of antibiotics to blood transfusions or surgery. A general surgeon, gastroenterologist or colorectal surgeon may become involved in devising the appropriate treatment plan.
Significance
The majority of people who experience rectal bleeding and severe edema are elderly individuals who are prone to other medical problems. Consequently, they tend to suffer higher rates of illness and death.
Deaths from rectal bleeding and severe edema have dropped markedly in recent years due to more efficient hospital emergency departments, advances in procedures and evolving surgical management.
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