Megacolon is divided into the congenital and acquired types. The congenital form is Hirschsprung disease and includes classic, short-segment, and ultrashort-segment types as well as total colonic aganglionosis ( Fig. 87.1 ). Open full size image Fig. 87.1 Megacolon (Hirschsprung…
Folklore and society have maintained the philosophy that regular bowel movements are essential to health. Consequently people have attempted to maintain bowel regularity and to experience a “good” bowel movement by using laxatives and drugs that affect the gastrointestinal (GI)…
Constipation can generally be defined as fewer than three bowel movements per week. However, if it is included as a “functional disorder” in accordance with the Rome II criteria, the definition would state that the diagnosis of constipation requires at…
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Gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding is acute or chronic loss of blood from the upper or lower part GI tract ( Fig. 82.1 ). Acute bleeding may be life threatening, whereas chronic bleeding may be slow or even occult. The GI tract…
Examination of the stool directly and through microscopy and chemical tests can provide much useful information, although patients, physicians, and laboratories tend to avoid stool evaluation ( Fig. 81.1 ). Open full size image Fig. 81.1 Examination of the Stool.…
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Clinicians can now examine the anal canal, rectum, and colon with ease and with little discomfort to the patient. The indications for each procedure depend on the clinical presentation. For example, red blood on toilet paper or blood dripping into…
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