Rectal bleeding is a symptom of a problem within the GI tract. The definition is vast because it means that any blood passed rectally; as a result, the blood could come from any area or structure in the GI tract that enables blood to leak into the GI lumen, the place where food and fluid is processed for absorption or elimination as waste.
For instance, a bleeding ulcer in the stomach can have the blood excreted within the feces. Rectal bleeding may be due to problems on the rectum itself or from many different issues that arise somewhere else in the GI tract. Perirectal bleeding is bleeding in an area adjoining to the rectum and may be due to abscesses or fistulas.
The rectum is the last portion of the large intestine that ends before the anus. Bleeding from this area will be mild, serious, or even life-threatening; the presence of rectal bleeding should be carefully checked since it suggests that something is wrong within the gastrointestinal (GI) tract.
Causes of rectal bleeding include:
- Hemorrhoids, and anal fissures (tears in the rectal tissue)
- Diverticula (diverticulitis)
- Infections (bacterial and other pathogens)
- Inflammatory bowel diseases (Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis)
- Angiodysplasia (fragile blood vessels)
- Tumors
- Polyps,
- Bowel trauma
- Less common causes like upper GI tract problems like ulcers and Mallory-Weiss tears in the esophagus.
