Ulcerative Colitis—Gastrointestinal Bleeding

Also called: GI bleeding

Your digestive or gastrointestinal (GI) tract includes the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine or colon, rectum, and anus. Bleeding can come from any of these areas. The amount of bleeding can be so small that only a lab test can find it.

Signs of bleeding in the digestive tract depend where it is and how much bleeding there is.

Signs of bleeding in the upper digestive tract include

• Bright red blood in vomit
• Vomit that looks like coffee grounds
• Black or tarry stool
• Dark blood mixed with stool

Signs of bleeding in the lower digestive tract include

• Black or tarry stool
• Dark blood mixed with stool
• Stool mixed or coated with bright red blood

GI bleeding is not a disease, but a symptom of a disease. There are many possible causes of GI bleeding, including hemorrhoids, peptic ulcers, tears or inflammation in the esophagus, diverticulosis and diverticulitis, ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, colonic polyps, or cancer in the colon, stomach or esophagus.

The test used most often to look for the cause of GI bleeding is called endoscopy. It uses a flexible instrument inserted through the mouth or rectum to view the inside of the GI tract. A type of endoscopy called colonoscopy looks at the large intestine.

NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

• Bleeding esophageal varices (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Bloody or tarry stools (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Gastrointestinal bleeding (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Lower GI Series – NIH (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
• Mallory-Weiss tear (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Vomiting blood (Medical Encyclopedia)

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic disorder that affects the digestive system. This condition is characterized by abnormal inflammation of the inner surface of the rectum and colon, which make up most of the length of the large intestine. The inflammation usually causes open sores (ulcers) to develop in the large intestine. Ulcerative colitis usually appears between ages 15 and 30, although it can develop at any age. The inflammation tends to flare up multiple times throughout life, which causes recurring signs and symptoms.The most common symptoms of ulcerative colitis are abdominal pain and cramping and frequent diarrhea, often with blood, pus, or mucus in the stool. Other signs and symptoms include nausea, loss of appetite, fatigue, and fevers. Chronic bleeding from the inflamed and ulcerated intestinal tissue can cause a shortage of red blood cells (anemia) in some affected individuals. People with this disorder have difficulty absorbing enough fluids and nutrients from their diet and often experience weight loss. Affected children usually grow more slowly than normal. Less commonly, ulcerative colitis causes problems with the skin, joints, eyes, kidneys, or liver, which are most likely due to abnormal inflammation.Toxic megacolon is a rare complication of ulcerative colitis that can be life-threatening. Toxic megacolon involves widening of the colon and an overwhelming bacterial infection (sepsis). Ulcerative colitis also increases the risk of developing colon cancer, especially in people whose entire colon is inflamed and in people who have had ulcerative colitis for 8 or more years.Ulcerative colitis is one common form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Another type of IBD, Crohn disease, also causes chronic inflammation of the intestines. Unlike ulcerative colitis, which affects only the inner surface of the large intestine, Crohn disease can cause inflammation in any part of the digestive system, and the inflammation extends deeper into the intestinal tissue.