The child has hard stools with blood. Why does my child have blood in his stool? How to treat

Painful defecation with blood in some cases can indicate the development of serious diseases that require urgent diagnosis and treatment.

Causes

The most common reasons:

• Anal fissures.
• Crohn's disease.
• Infectious infection.
• Juvenile polyps.
• Worm infestation.
• Hirschsprung's disease, etc.

If one of these pathologies is diagnosed, immediate treatment is required, the direction of which will be indicated by the attending physician.

Other reasons why stool may change color and turn dark shades include:

• Eating certain foods, such as chocolate, beets, black currants, food gelatin, bird cherry, etc.
• Taking certain medications that cause a nonspecific reaction in the body (most often these are antibiotics, medications with bismuth, activated carbon, etc.).

In such situations, the child’s health status should not cause concern to parents, but to be more confident that everything is in order, you should consult a specialist.

Should I panic and run to the doctor?

First, you need to remember what the child ate several hours before problems with bowel movements appeared; whether any medications were taken.

For example, bird cherry jam can cause severe constipation (or bird cherry berries that a child swallowed along with the seeds), while beets, on the contrary, in excess quantities cause loose stools and diarrhea. In both cases, the chair takes on an unusual color. These foods can cause painful symptoms and poor health if consumed in excess. Small portions of food do not cause such phenomena and only color the stool an unusual color.

In order for the child to feel vigorous and healthy again, these foods should be temporarily excluded from the diet. In such situations, you should consult a doctor if the child’s complaints of pain during bowel movements are accompanied by other alarming symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, weakness, etc.

Associated symptoms

But it happens that in addition to blood in the stool, the child has:

• The temperature rises.
• There are complaints of severe headaches.
• The skin turns red and a rash or hives may appear.
• There is confusion.
• Evacuation does not occur for several days.
• Defecation is accompanied by sharp pain in the anus and abdominal cramps.
• In addition to blood, helminths are found in the stool.

If at least a few of the above signs appear, the child’s condition requires an immediate visit to the doctor.

What diseases most often lead to the appearance of blood in the stool?

Anal fissures

Introducing a new product into the daily menu, changing the diet, consuming flour products, meat, chicken eggs, etc., which belong to the category of “heavy”, difficult-to-digest foods, can cause constipation in a child. Their appearance is also facilitated by a small amount of fluid entering the body daily. Dense stool forms in the intestines, the movement of which is difficult. Evacuation may occur less frequently than usual (once every few days) and may be accompanied by severe pain.

While the feces are in the intestines, the process of absorption of substances through its walls continues, and the feces become even more dense and not plastic. During bowel movements, the child strains strongly, small cracks and wounds appear on the intestinal mucosa and anus, and blood, along with a lump of feces, comes out. Painful bowel movements do not go away without leaving a trace. If the urge to go to the toilet arises again, cracks in the anal area that have not had time to heal make themselves known with cutting pain. The child develops a fear of going to the toilet.

Crohn's disease

Stools in which threads of bright scarlet blood are found indicate pathologies in the lower intestine: colon, rectum, and anus.

Dark-colored feces indicate the formation of granulomas and longitudinal ulcers in the small intestine and stomach. Crohn's disease can affect any part of the digestive tract, from the mouth to the anus. A focus of inflammation that forms in the small intestine or at the junction of the small intestine with the large intestine bleeds, and the blood reacts with enzymes of the gastrointestinal tract, turning into hydrochloric acid hematin (dark clots). Therefore, feces also turn dark.

Infectious infection

Pathogenic bacteria and viruses, entering the intestines, suppress the activity of beneficial microflora and cause rapidly developing inflammatory processes in the mucous membrane. The disease is accompanied by high fever during exacerbation, dysbiosis, diarrhea or constipation, and general weakness.

If a child suffers from diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, there is a risk of dehydration. The mucous membranes become dry, the skin becomes hot. Treatment can only be prescribed by a doctor. An admixture of blood in the stool may indicate a complicated form of the disease, which requires immediate examination and clarification of the exact cause of the pathology.

Juvenile polyps

A healthy intestinal mucosa is smooth and moist. Goblet cells form healthy epithelium, which does not create obstacles to the movement of feces. Juvenile polyps are benign formations consisting of connective tissue that quickly grows in the epithelial layer. In appearance, they look like semicircular elevations, attached to the epithelial layer with a wide base or stalk. By themselves they do not cause pain. It can only be detected with a special examination.

But when feces move through the area where the polyps are located, solid fecal particles scratch the bulges on the mucous membrane, which begin to bleed. The surface of the intestine in areas affected by juvenile polyps is similar to cobblestones, and despite muscle contractions, feces get stuck in a difficult area. The last liquid from it is absorbed by the intestinal walls, and the dense contents turn into a solid lump. The situation is even more complicated.

Worm infestation

In advanced stages of the disease, the situation becomes more complicated, causing general intoxication of the body and severe bleeding.

Hirschsprung's disease

This is a very serious disease that can progress rapidly over time and cause intestinal obstruction. There is no innervation in a certain area of ​​the intestine, that is, in this segment it ceases to perform its function. Peristalsis is completely absent, and feces accumulate in the “dead” zone, causing gradual stretching of the intestinal walls. The disease can be inherited. If you do not start timely treatment, in 80% of cases the situation ends in death.

Treatment - what doctors prescribe

Experts prescribe treatment depending on the cause of the disease.

An allergic reaction to components contained in infant formula can lead to the appearance of blood clots in the baby's stool. Artificial formula often contains soy protein. This is what causes the pathology. Stool accompanied by bleeding can also cause breast milk in the baby if the mother consumes products containing soy protein (some mothers themselves enjoy eating infant formula).

A child’s body, which does not produce enough enzymes, cannot break down soy protein into nutritional components. As a result, signs of individual food intolerance appear, diarrhea, constipation, bleeding, etc.

All of the above diseases can also cause blood in the stool of an infant.

What is occult blood in a child's stool?

This phenomenon is called - sideropenia. It does not manifest itself through external signs, since the bleeding is mild, but continues constantly. Thus, unnoticed by himself, the child loses a large amount of blood. If it is stomach bleeding, the baby may vomit dark contents that resemble coffee grounds. This is blood that has coagulated under the influence of hydrochloric acid.

Intestinal or stomach bleeding manifests itself through signs of anemia: the skin turns pale, the child gets tired quickly, the level of hemoglobin in the blood drops, and a state of general weakness does not allow the child to engage in active games. An immediate examination of the body is required, which will include FGDS, coprogram, palpation, sigmoidoscopy, etc.

You cannot ignore such an alarming symptom as blood clots in a child’s stool and let the situation take its course. This sign may indicate minor damage to the tissues of the anus, but in some cases it is a formidable signal indicating a pathological condition that requires immediate intervention by medical specialists in the fate of the baby.

The appearance of droplets of blood in a child’s stool should definitely alert parents. This cannot be an accident. In most cases, this means that a disease has occurred, but an anal injury that the baby inflicted on himself is also possible. In any case, it is necessary to establish a diagnosis and begin treatment. You shouldn’t be scared right away, but it’s not recommended to ignore the symptom either.

Causes of blood in a child's stool

To determine why there is blood in the stool, you need to pay attention to the accompanying symptoms. Does your stomach hurt, does your temperature rise, is there any mucus in your stool? In infants, blood appears in the first months of life if the body demonstrates an allergic reaction to milk protein.

Juvenile polyps are also possible, more often found in children under ten years of age. Polyps are cluster-shaped growths, pressure on which causes the release of mucus-like fluid. Other reasons are also known.

Anal fissure

Fresh traces of blood in a newborn, grunting and crying during bowel movements indicate constipation and a rupture of the rectal mucosa that occurs due to stress. A rupture forms in the anal area, causing severe pain. The occurrence of a crack is accompanied by:

• the appearance of fresh blood in the stool;
• painful sensations in the anus;
• pain when moving;
• difficulties with bowel movements;
• Frequent crying for no apparent reason in babies.

Children 7 years of age and older are often embarrassed to report discomfort in the anus to their elders. The child's desire to avoid bowel movements may suggest possible complications. At the same time, the feces in the intestines become denser and increase in volume, exacerbating the problem.

Diagnosis of a crack is carried out by a doctor. To identify the disease, palpation of the anus is used, as well as analysis of stool to exclude inflammation and the presence of worms. Sometimes you have to resort to anoscopy or sigmoidoscopy to examine the rectum.

Haemorrhoids

What should you do if there is blood on the paper or diaper after a bowel movement? Perhaps it is hemorrhoids, which affects every third adult. It also occurs in children 1-3 years old.

Most often, in a one-year-old baby, the disease develops against the background of periodic constipation. They arise due to poor nutrition, leading to the formation of hard stool. Efforts during defecation cause a rush of blood to certain areas of the intestine, which creates the preconditions for the formation of hemorrhoidal nodules.

Signs of hemorrhoids in children are traces of scarlet blood in the stool, protrusion of the anus when screaming or crying, which goes away when the child calms down. Sometimes hemorrhoids in a baby are a sign of abnormal development, so if you suspect their appearance, you should consult a doctor. Sometimes changing your diet will help cope with the problem, but diagnosis and treatment should be carried out by a specialist.

Untreated hemorrhoids can lead to blood clots and severe inflammation. Children 5 years of age and older are able to tell their parents about unpleasant sensations; children only cry.

Schoolchildren acquire the disease due to poor nutrition and sitting for long periods of time in class. To protect yourself from trouble, you need to monitor your child’s diet, fight dysbiosis, constipation, and give him the opportunity to move more.

Acute intestinal infections

The appearance of blood in the stool, especially accompanied by diarrhea, may signal the occurrence of an infectious disease. Some pathogens of acute intestinal diseases can cause intestinal damage, leading to bleeding. These include:

Enteritis and colitis affect the small and large intestines, respectively. Bloody discharge with each type of infection has a specific character, which allows the doctor to suggest a particular disease.

However, the final diagnosis is established on the basis of microscopic examinations and bacteriological cultures.

Crohn's disease

Crohn's disease is inflammatory and affects all parts of the intestine, starting from the oral cavity (more details in the article:). The disease is immune in nature, affects all layers of the digestive system, causing the formation of ulcers and scars. The disease may be of hereditary origin, or may be caused by viral or bacterial infectious diseases. It may develop as a consequence of a dysfunction of the immune system.

Most often, the disease affects people aged 15 to 35 or after 60, but the hereditary form is possible at an early age. The pathology is accompanied by prolonged diarrhea - longer than 6 weeks - abdominal pain, weight loss. Fever, fatigue and lack of appetite are common.

Nonspecific ulcerative colitis

Nonspecific ulcerative colitis is a chronic disease of continuous or recurrent course. The disease is of an inflammatory-dystrophic nature and causes a number of complications. The process begins in the rectum, subsequently affecting other areas of the large intestine, often accompanied by diarrhea.

Colitis can develop in children of any age, but infants are less susceptible to it.

In infancy, boys are more likely to develop the disease; girls are at risk of developing the disease in adolescence. Several sources of occurrence are known:

• infectious, in which the process is initiated by bacteria, microorganism toxins or viruses;
• psychogenic – the disease occurs as a reaction to stress, psychological trauma;
• immune, when a malfunction in the functioning of the immune system leads to the development of pathology.

Children prone to allergic reactions are also at risk. The main signs of the disease are diarrhea, loose, foul-smelling stools, and impurities in the form of mucus and blood are present in the stool (we recommend reading:). Depending on the severity of the condition, the child diarrhea from 4 to 20 times a day. The disease is accompanied by decreased appetite, weakness, and bloating.

Constipation

A newborn should poop after every meal. A one-and-a-half-year-old baby should walk about 1-2 times a day, and his stool should be formed. If bowel movements occur less frequently and the feces are compacted, the process causes pain - we can talk about constipation. In general, bowel movements less than 6 times a week in children under 3 years of age and less than 3 times a week in older children is a sign of constipation.

It will not be possible to eliminate the problem with the help of enemas and laxatives; constipation can become chronic and remain with the child for life. The causes of constipation are divided into functional and psychological. Functional ones include:

• poor nutrition;
• lack of fluid in the diet;
• dysbacteriosis;
• food allergies;
• congenital enzyme deficiency;
• helminthiasis;
• abuse of enemas, etc.

Psychological reasons that force a child to refuse to walk include: forced cessation of breastfeeding, persistent potty training, difficulties when visiting the toilet in child care institutions. Delayed bowel movements lead to dehydration and hardening of the stool.

Causes of occult blood

Discharge from the butt in the form of blood and mucus indicates the presence of gastrointestinal pathologies in the child. An even more dangerous symptom is hidden blood, which cannot always be seen with the naked eye.

Dark, almost black color of stool can occur due to internal bleeding in the intestines. The reasons for this phenomenon are:

• inflammation of the gastric mucosa (gastritis);
• atrophy of the mucous membrane of the small intestine with enteritis;
• peptic ulcers of the stomach or duodenum;
• helminthiasis;
• infectious diseases;
• poisoning.

If you suspect occult blood, you should immediately consult a doctor. The presence of bleeding and its causes can only be determined by hardware tests.

The main causes of stool with mucus and blood in babies under one year old

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The first days after birth, the baby poops meconium, which is black in color. The stool then turns light brown and has a mushy consistency. The appearance of dark stool subsequently requires contacting a doctor.

If the child feels restless and the mother is wary of the color of the stool, you should consult a pediatrician

Sometimes the veins that frighten the mother or the dark color of the stool in a child under one year old are explained by innocent reasons: the mother ate a beet or tomato, which led to the appearance of a red tint in the baby’s stool. Charcoal or blood from the nipples turns the stool dark. However, blood and mucus or red streaks may appear due to:

• dysbacteriosis;
• atopic dermatitis (bleeding rash inside the intestines);
• an allergic reaction to a protein contained in cow's milk and entering the baby's gastrointestinal tract with formula or breast milk;
• polyps in the intestines;
• lactose deficiency.

Intestinal dysbiosis

The sterile intestines of the fetus during childbirth and breastfeeding are populated with microorganisms necessary for the proper functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. Normal microflora consists of lactobacilli, bifidobacteria and E. coli. It also contains a small number of opportunistic microorganisms.

A violation of the ratio of beneficial and harmful microflora is called dysbiosis. Dysbacteriosis causes a lot of trouble for the baby. To avoid it, it is advisable not to give up breastfeeding until the age of one and a half years, and to start complementary feeding with cottage cheese and kefir.

Breastfed children are much less likely to suffer from gastrointestinal problems than formula-fed children.

Intestinal obstruction

Intestinal obstruction is expressed in slowing down or stopping the movement of feces through the intestines. It is caused by congenital pathologies of the intestinal tract, neoplasms, inflammation, and impaired intestinal motor function.

Intestinal obstruction is accompanied by pain, retention of stool and gas, vomiting, often with clots of mucus, and asymmetrical bloating. The appearance of symptoms of intestinal obstruction requires urgent medical intervention, as the disease can be fatal.

Causes of blood in the stool of a school-age child

The appearance of blood discharge can suggest why there is blood in the stool. Bright scarlet occurs with bleeding from the lower intestines due to hemorrhoids, fissures, tumors. Chronic inflammation is accompanied by the appearance of streaks or bloody clots in the stool. Infectious diseases, along with blood spots, cause an increase in temperature.

What to do if there is blood in the stool?

If bloody discharge from the butt or blood in the stool appears, you should immediately seek medical help. Without tests and hardware examinations of the intestines, it is impossible to make a diagnosis. Treating yourself is too dangerous. For effective treatment, the doctor must determine the source of the bleeding and the disease that caused it.

This phenomenon in children has two main features. First, in the vast majority of cases it does not pose any danger, although it may require some help from parents. Second, there are very dangerous diseases that are accompanied by blood in the stool of children, and they should not be missed under any circumstances. Therefore, it would be useful for parents to know what it means if a child has blood in the stool, and which doctor they need to go to, because in this case it will certainly be necessary to visit a doctor.

Blood in the stool can be found in a breastfed newborn and in older children. And we must admit, this happens quite often.

Why there is blood in the stool in children: reasons

The first step is to determine where the blood is coming from. If bleeding occurs in the upper digestive tract (stomach or small intestine), the stool will be dark in color, even black as tar. It should be said that these are the most dangerous conditions. The blood in the stool darkens under the influence of hydrochloric acid from the stomach. And if it is released from the lower intestines (anus, rectum or colon), it remains bright red.

Fresh scarlet blood in the stool in children most often appears due to cracks in the anus, which occur as a result of straining and the passage of hard feces during constipation. For this reason, streaks of blood may appear in the stool of a newborn (for example, after inserting a rectal suppository or thermometer, giving an enema or a gas tube) and in an older child, up to a teenager. When the anus and rectal walls are damaged, blood fragments do not mix with the feces, but remain, as a rule, on their surface. Blood in the stool in children with constipation does not indicate danger, but requires attention and some kind of correction, which we will talk about a little later.

Bloody spots appear in the stool and with an allergy to cow's milk and soy protein, especially if blood is found in the stool of an infant (other symptoms of such an allergy are frequent vomiting, diarrhea with blood streaks). Blood impurities can occur when a baby is fed formula or cow's milk, or if a breastfeeding mother consumes dairy products. It should be noted that milk protein intolerance (lactase deficiency), as a rule, goes away on its own by the end of the first year of life or a little later, but it should still be excluded from the diet if the diagnosis is confirmed.

Another fairly common reason for this phenomenon is the consumption of coloring foods and certain medications that give the stool the color of blood - dark or red. In particular, this often occurs after taking antibiotics (intestinal dysbiosis develops), activated carbon, bismuth or iron preparations (they tend to turn the stool black, and it may seem as if there is dark blood in it), consumption by a child or a nursing mother. eating foods with coloring properties (containing food dyes, chocolate, beets, currants, tomatoes, dark green vegetables). In the same way, the stool can become colored if you eat too much beef.

Blood in the stool in loose stools in children also appears during intestinal infections (dysentery, salmonellosis, cytomegalovirus, viral hemorrhagic fevers, amebiasis, schistosis), when poisoning occurs with contaminated food or bacteria (viruses) enter the mouth through the hands (including when worms actively reproduce). Bloody stool due to rotavirus is accompanied by other painful symptoms: abdominal pain, frequent diarrhea mixed with pus and mucus, vomiting and fever.

If a child has diarrhea, fever, vomiting and blood in the stool, then you need to call a doctor immediately: firstly, rapid severe dehydration of the body occurs; secondly, pathogenic bacteria inhibit the functioning of a small organism - this condition is all the more dangerous the younger the child. Urgent hospitalization is required.

Much less often we are talking about the development of serious pathologies that require a thorough examination of the child. Sometimes the following pathologies are found in children, a sign of which may be rectal bleeding:

• Inflammatory processes in the intestines (ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease). A dangerous condition accompanied by gastric bleeding due to damage to the mucous membrane. In addition to rectal bleeding, vomiting of blood (looks like coffee grounds), diarrhea with pus and mucus, abdominal pain, and fever are also observed. The child refuses to eat, becomes lethargic, and loses weight.
• Intestinal obstruction (intussusception, Hirschsprung's disease). As a rule, it occurs acutely, but manifests itself from birth or in the first months of life. The child cries hysterically after eating and spits up like a fountain. Treatment in this case is surgical.
• Juvenile polyps in the large intestine. These are benign formations, and they cannot degenerate into cancer. However, a specialist may decide to surgically remove them. Such polyps most often occur in children 2-8 years old and are accompanied by red blood in the stool without any significant other symptoms.

There are other possible causes (cancer tumors, varicose veins of the esophagus, intestinal tuberculosis, Mallory-Weiss syndrome, etc.), but they are more typical for adults.

Suspicion of such complex conditions is the basis for a thorough examination of the child. But let us remind you once again that such cases are rare.

What to do if there is blood in your child's stool

If the child behaves and feels normally, does not express obvious anxiety and malaise, and does not show other dangerous signs (acute abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, high temperature, etc.), then, most likely, the cause of bloody stools was microtrauma of the blood vessels in the intestinal mucosa. However, no matter what, the child must be shown to a doctor in order to exclude dangerous pathologies, emphasizes Evgeniy Komarovsky. But! Be very careful with doctors and their prescriptions...

First, you can contact your pediatrician, and he will refer you to a proctologist or infectious disease specialist if he suspects something more serious. Usually, to make an accurate diagnosis, a face-to-face examination of the patient, a digital examination of the anus, and a laboratory examination of stool are sufficient. By the way, if a test for occult blood in the stool is prescribed, then a few days before the test it will be necessary to exclude coloring foods and substances from the diet so as not to get a false positive result. Only occasionally does there need to be a more thorough examination of the child (fluoroscopy, colonoscopy, ultrasound can be performed).

Only an experienced, qualified doctor is able to determine whether treatment is required in each individual case and how exactly to treat a child if he has blood in his stool.

It is necessary to show the baby to a doctor urgently if:

• there is a lot of blood;
• combination of blood in the stool and fever or vomiting,
• there is blood in the stool during diarrhea;
• there are complaints of abdominal pain;
• frequent regurgitation occurs like a fountain;
• the child loses weight and activity.

In such cases, urgently call an ambulance, and until the doctors arrive, do not feed the baby or give him any medications, do not use heating pads or enemas, or place him on his stomach!

If you are sure that streaks of blood in the baby’s stool appeared due to constipation, then you will have to seriously work on establishing normal, painless bowel movements. You can soften stool using lactulose (various syrups are sold at the pharmacy), and use suppositories with sea buckthorn oil to heal cracks. But all this should be recommended to you by your pediatrician.

And at the end of our conversation, we want to draw your attention to the most important thing. In recent years, the World Health Organization has considered it an absolute norm if drops, streaks or fragments of blood in small quantities appear in an infant’s stool. The reason for this leniency towards blood-containing stool is the trend towards increased incidence of allergies to cow protein in children. In this regard, first of all, eliminate this reason - experimentally: remove from the diet any products containing cow protein (cottage cheese, milk, cheese, meat, sour cream, butter, cream, kefir, cookies and other baked goods). If the blood disappears, exhale. It's not easy, but you'll just have to learn to live without such products, at least until the baby grows up.

And regarding dysbiosis. As much as they like to treat him here, abroad they don’t attach any importance to him at all (and they don’t give such a diagnosis). Be especially careful if doctors prescribe antibiotics and if they stubbornly undertake to treat dysbiosis in babies under one year old: it is precisely this treatment that can repeatedly worsen the baby’s health, including the condition of his poop. Progressive modern pediatricians are confident: no interference in the process of formation of intestinal microflora in children under one year of age is unacceptable! No staphylococcus or other bacteria are a reason for zealous treatment, unless the child feels normal, that is, there are no significant health problems (he eats, sleeps, gains weight (if we are talking about babies), plays and has fun (if we are talking about about older babies), if there is no frequent excessive vomiting, diarrhea and fever).

In general, the real salt is in this final part. Because often mothers are faced with exactly this situation - children intolerant to milk. It’s just that not everyone knows that such a reaction is manifested by the appearance of blood in the stool. But now you know.

Let nothing bother you, and let your children be healthy!

Especially for - Elena Semenova

INTRODUCTION

Finding blood in a child's stool can be very alarming for parents. However, this happens quite often and in the vast majority of cases is not dangerous. There are many known causes of rectal bleeding, but they mostly depend on the age of the child. Your doctor will help you determine why this is happening and choose the most appropriate treatment.

In this article, we'll look at some of the most common causes of rectal bleeding (blood in the stool) and describe additional tests that may be needed for diagnosis.

WHEN TO SEEK HELP

Most children with mild rectal bleeding do not have serious illnesses. However, it is impossible to determine the true cause of bleeding in absentia. Therefore, if you notice that your child is bleeding from the rectum, you should take him to the doctor to determine whether further testing is needed.

TYPES OF RECTAL BLEEDING

There are two main sources of blood in stool: the upper digestive tract (stomach and small intestine) and the lower digestive tract (colon, rectum and anus).

• Bleeding from the upper digestive tract usually causes black, tarry stools (this is due to the conversion of iron in hemoglobin to hematin hydrochloride by the action of stomach hydrochloric acid. Hematin hydrochloride is black in color).
• Bleeding from the lower digestive tract is usually caused by stool that is characterized by stool containing fresh blood that is red in color (streaks of blood or blood mixed with stool).
• Some foods and medications can also change the color of stool, making it almost the color of blood (i.e., red or black). A list of these substances is given below:

Antibiotics;
- beet;
- Activated carbon;
- flavored gelatin (red);
- powder dyes with drinks;
- medications that contain dyes;
- chocolate;
- iron supplements;
- various dark green foods.

However, it is not always possible to accurately determine the source or type of rectal bleeding based solely on the color of the stool. Questioning and inspection are necessary in any case.

MAIN CAUSES OF BLOOD IN THE FECTOR

• An anal fissure, or anal fissure, is a tear in the mucous membrane that can develop if a child constantly has large and/or hard stool (constipation). Anal fissures can occur in children of all age groups - from newborns to school-aged children and even students. Symptoms of an anal fissure include pain, straining, crying or grunting during bowel movements, and bright red (fresh) blood on the surface of the stool. Many infants and children with anal fissures have a history of constipation.
• Cow's milk protein and soy allergy (CMPA) is an intolerance to cow's milk and soy, also known as "milk allergy", "protein-induced proctitis or proctocolitis". This condition is usually diagnosed in infants. This pathology is associated with sensitization of the child’s body to cow’s milk or soy protein and usually develops in bottle-fed children. But allergies can also develop in a breastfed baby if his mother consumes dairy products. In most cases, ABCM goes away without treatment by 12 months, that is, the child outgrows it. Symptoms of ABCM may include vomiting, diarrhea, and blood in the stool. If it is ABCM that is recognized as the most likely cause of blood in the stool, then a diet excluding cow's milk is considered the tactic of choice. They are trying to switch formula-fed children to formulas containing split cow's milk protein. Mothers who are exclusively breastfeeding are asked to eliminate all dairy products from their diet for approximately 2 weeks, after which they can try to evaluate the effectiveness of this “therapy”.

LESS COMMON CAUSES

DIAGNOSIS OF ANAL BLEEDING (LABORATORY AND INSTRUMENTAL METHODS)

Sometimes a doctor can determine the cause of bleeding only through information gathering and a physical examination, which usually includes a digital examination of the anus, or in other words, a rectal examination. The doctor may also test a stool sample for blood using laboratory tests.

Usually, the use of these two research methods is sufficient for diagnosis. If the cause of bleeding remains unclear, then a more in-depth examination may be required. It includes colonoscopy, an endoscopic examination of the large intestine, and imaging tests (X-rays or ultrasounds). The doctor chooses the most appropriate methods depending on the clinical picture of the disease.

TREATMENT OF RECTAL BLEEDING

As mentioned above, there are a number of possible causes of rectal bleeding. But only the attending physician can decide whether your child needs treatment and what exactly it will consist of. Even if the bleeding seems minor or goes away on its own, your child should be examined by a doctor!

Blood in a child’s stool frightens parents, but there is no need to panic prematurely, because stool mixed with blood does not always indicate the presence of serious pathologies. The reasons for the appearance of blood in a child’s stool can be different and, first of all, you need to focus on the age of the baby.

From time to time, almost all children experience minor rectal bleeding that does not affect their general well-being. But without medical help it is impossible to find out the exact cause of this phenomenon. Let's figure out what could be causing the appearance of blood in the stool, what to do if a child poops with blood, and how to prepare him for an occult blood test.

Causes of rectal bleeding

Blood in a baby's stool is quite possible if the baby swallowed a small amount of maternal blood during birth. But on the other hand, feces with blood in newborns is a very rare occurrence that can signal serious problems in the child’s body.

Doctors identify two possible sources of blood in a child's stool. The first is the stomach and small intestine, the second is the anus, rectum and large intestine. When there is bleeding from the upper digestive tract, the baby's stool turns black. The stool becomes black due to the effect of hydrochloric acid on hemoglobin.

Streaks of blood in a child's stool that are bright red or scarlet in color are a symptom of bleeding in the lower intestines.

In children over two years of age, a rectal fissure often develops - damage to the skin and mucous membrane that lines the anus. Such a crack most often appears due to difficult passage of feces. Usually some blood is released and can be found on the surface of the stool. The damage heals quickly, provided that the child's intestines are not constantly overcrowded. Prevention of intestinal cracks - proper nutrition, active lifestyle and prevention of constipation.

If a mother finds blood in her child’s stool and the bleeding is combined with painful sensations in the abdomen, she should immediately contact a pediatrician. The most likely reason for this combination is intestinal obstruction (intussusception) due to the so-called “volvulus”. During an attack, the child screams, and between spasms it calms down. In addition to bloody stool, the child may vomit, and the abdomen may become bloated and tense. Surgery may be required to correct the intussusception.

Streaks of blood in a baby's stool can be caused by a sore throat or nosebleed (if the baby swallows blood). Streaky diarrhea can be caused by an allergic reaction of the child's body to soy or cow's milk protein.

Juvenile polyps (growths on the intestines) are another common cause of rectal bleeding. In addition to blood in the stool, the child may experience the following symptoms: lethargy, abdominal pain, fever. If at least one of the listed symptoms appears, you should urgently call an ambulance.

Liquid stool with blood in a child most often appears due to anaerobic bacterial infections, salmonellosis or dysentery. Some infections go unnoticed, while others are very dangerous for the child.

Sometimes black stools may not be caused by blood, but by certain medications or foods.

We list the drugs and products that cause stool coloration:

• iron-containing drugs;
• Activated carbon;
• chocolate;
• beet;
• confectionery gelatin;
• some antibiotics;
• bismuth preparations.

Test to detect hidden blood in a child's stool

It happens that the presence of blood in stool cannot be determined visually. In this case, a special test is prescribed aimed at identifying hidden blood in the child’s stool. Specialists use a special technique to analyze a baby’s stool for occult blood. They use extremely sensitive chemicals that easily oxidize and change color (for example, benzidine, guaiac).

If the pediatrician recommended that parents have their child's stool tested, they should pay special attention to their diet. If improperly prepared for the test, hidden blood may be detected in a healthy baby’s stool. out of 5 (8 votes)