An intestinal obstruction is a blockage of the intestine. It can be caused by a physical blockage or by a problem of abnormal function of the intestine. CAUSES Adhesions from previous surgeries. Cancer or tumor. A hernia, which is a condition in which a portion of the bowel bulges out through an opening or weakness in the abdomen. This sometimes squeezes the bowel. A swallowed object. Blockage (impaction) with worms is common in third world countries. A twisting of the bowel or telescoping of a portion of the bowel into another portion (intussusceptions). Anything that stops food from going through from the stomach to the anus. SYMPTOMS Symptoms of bowel obstruction may include abdominal bloating, nausea, vomiting, explosive diarrhea, or …show more content…
Often, lab studies (blood work) and X-rays may be used to find the cause. TREATMENT The main treatment for this condition is to rest the intestine. Often, the obstruction may relieve itself and allow the intestine to start working again. Think of the intestine like a balloon that is blown up (filled with trapped food and water that has squeezed into a hole or area that it cannot get through). If the obstruction is complete, a nasogastric (NG) tube is passed through the nose and into the stomach. It is then connected to suction to keep the stomach emptied out. This also helps treat the nausea and vomiting. If there is an imbalance in the electrolytes, they are corrected with intravenous fluids. These fluids have the proper chemicals in them to correct the problem. If the reason for the blockage does not get better with conservative (nonsurgical) treatment, surgery may be necessary. Sometimes, surgery is done immediately if your surgeon knows that the problem is not going to get better with conservative treatment. PROGNOSIS Depending on what the problem is, most of these problems can be treated by your caregivers with good results. Your caregiver will discuss with you the best course of action to
Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). It causes inflammation of the lining of your digestive tract, which can lead to abdominal pain, severe diarrhea and even malnutrition. Inflammation caused by Crohn's disease can involve different areas of the digestive tract in different people. The inflammation caused by Crohn's disease often spreads deep into the layers of affected bowel tissue. Like ulcerative colitis, another common IBD, Crohn's disease can be both painful and debilitating, and sometimes may lead to life-threatening complications. Although it may involve any part of the digestive tract from the mouth to the anus, it most commonly affects the last part of the small intestine (ileum) and/or the large
Since you have been diagnosed with a bowel obstruction the doctor wants you not eat or drink anything. The reason why the doctor would like you to refrain from having anything to eat and drink is to give your intestines time to rest and if you are not intaking anything your bowels do not have to help digest anything and are able to relax. Having you not eat or drink anything will hopefully help with the blockage since the intestines are allowed to relax.
his neurologic intensive care unit (NICU) stay, Y.W. was intubated and placed on mechanical ventilation, had a feeding tube inserted and was placed on tube feedings, had a Foley catheter to down drain (DD), and had multiple IVs inserted. He developed pneumonia 1 month after admission.
During the small bowel series, the radiologist was not able to determine the exact area of obstruction. The study was terminated after two hours and the patient was returned to her room. Following the small bowel series, the patient complained of abdominal pain and cramping. The patient’s tube was leaking bowel from the side of the tube and onto her abdomen. It was also noted that her parenteral nutrition was not adequate (LWR radiology, 2015).
Eventually, bowel obstruction can be the result from chronic narrowing and strictures of the lumen (Chang & Johnson, 2014, p.
Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. It can affect any part of the GI tract from the mouth to the anus. According to the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA), “recent research suggests hereditary, genetics, and/or environmental factors contribute to the development of Crohn’s Disease” (“What’s Crohn’s”). The CCFA adds that diet and stress may aggravate the disease but do not cause it. You can differentiate the types of Crohn’s diseases by the part of the GI affected. The most common type the illeocolitis affect both the small intestine and the large intestine (the colon). Other types of Crohn’s disease such as the ileitis, gastroduodenal and jejunoileitis only affect the small intestine. Lastly, the granulomatous colitis type only affect the colon.
Crohn’s disease unfortunately has no cure, being that the cause is unknown. There are several drugs help controlling the disease, like prescription medications. Doctors can also recommend over the counter treatments such as pain relievers and supplements. People also can reduces the severity of the disease by having low fiber diets, regularly exercising. This helps control the inflammation and relieve abdominal pain, diarrhea and reduces rectal bleeding. For example, eating ripe bananas, apples, curd, and pureed vegetables can help maintain a good diet. Stress causes the symptoms to worsen so relaxations techniques like yoga can be super helpful. In more serious cases people may require surgery to clear out intestinal blockage, repair damage and treat symptoms that are hard to
When the gut gets inflamed it tends to make the bowl thick, swollen, inflamed and angry as Crohn’s has a habit of attacking different parts of the bowel. A patch of inflammation can be small (only a few centimetres) or extend out a long distance along the gut. Crohn’s is one of the two main forms of Inflammatory Bowel Disease
The name for these erosions is aphthous ulcers. These erosions, after a while, start to deepen and grow in diameter. Once they reach a certain size, they can be referred to as ulcers. These ulcers can cause scarring and they can also cause the bowel to become stiff and lose its elasticity. As Crohn’s worsens, the bowel becomes obstructed once the passageways narrow enough. This obstruction can cause a buildup of food that is still being digested, fluid and gas that comes from the stomach. This obstruction will then prevent all of those products from entering into the colon. This will cause severe abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, and even abdominal distention. If the ulcers located in the walls of the bowel become large or extreme enough, holes can form in the walls of the bowel. Once those holes are formed in the bowel, the bacteria normal to the bowel can then pass through those holes and spread to nearby organs and into the abdominal cavity causing what are called fistulas. These fistulas are like a channel/tunnel that is formed between the ulcer and the adjacent organ. Then when a fistula is created between the affected intestine and the bladder, it is called an enteric-vesicular fistula which can lead to UTI’s and feces being presented during urination. Next, when the fistula is formed between the intestine and skin, it is called an enteric-cutaneous fistula. What this fistula, pus and mucous exit the body through a painful opening found in the skin of the
Firstly, doctors provide drugs to help prevent your intestines from further inflammation and to relieve symptoms. These drugs also help to stop the symptoms from appearing. Many use Aminosalicylates, which treat the mild stages of the disease and they help to control the level of inflammation. Antibiotics, another common medication helps to treat and heal infections and symptoms. Corticosteroids are very powerful and are used during the late stages, and are very effective as they are fast-acting, but can cause major side effects. Besides medications, surgery is also an option, where parts of your digestive tract will be removed and repositioned, connecting it to healthy parts. Surgery may be considered generally in the severe stages to close up opened tissue, drain out waste or to widen the narrowed intestines. In addition, you may also consider taking nutrient therapy, where nutrients are injected into your veins to relieve your bowel, or you would be asked to follow a low-fiber diet in order to reduce the risk of blocking your
The 78-year-old female client came into the emergency room (ER) with intractable nausea and vomiting over the previous 24 hours. She also presented with leukocytosis of approximately 14,000 cells/uL, mild hyponatremia and hypokalemia, and mild distention. The client was otherwise asymptomatic. An abdominal X-ray was able to identify and locate an adhesive related obstruction in her small intestine, resulting in a diagnosis of a Small Bowel Obstruction (SBO) (Lewis, Bucher, Heitkemper, & Harding, 2017). A SBO is a disruption in the progression of chyme in the gastrointestinal (GI) system (McCance, Huether, Brashers, & Rote, 2014). When it is an adhesive related SBO, fibrin is what is responsible for attaching a segment
A malrotation of the gut occurs when something goes wrong during development the small intestine (gut or small bowel). When this occurs, the small intestine is not fixed in the abdomen (belly). The intestines are held by just their blood supply. When the intestines become twisted, because they are not fastened down, it cuts off their blood supply. It is much like a hose getting kinked. This loss of blood supply leads to damage to the gut. This condition is also called volvulus.
Straining frequently while passing stool can bring about piece of the rectum — the end of the large intestine — to project outside the anus (rectal prolapse). At the point where this happens in children, it might be an indication of cystic fibrosis.
Patients with other abdominal anomalies may have an increased risk for intestinal atresia. For example, children with gastroschisis may also have intestinal atresia, and they should be examined for it (Bauman & Nanagas, 2015). The authors described a case of a neonatal child who was immediately diagnosed and treated for gastroschisis. However, the patient never had a bowel movement after surgical correction. By the fourth week without a bowel movement, an exploratory laparotomy was performed, and the child was diagnosed with intestinal atresia. Unfortunately, about 8 centimeters of small bowel was resected due to ill-appearance, but bowel to bowel anastomosis was performed. Interestingly, the patient still did not have a bowel movement, and
Defecation, also known as a bowel movement, is the act of excreting solid or semi-solid waste (feces) from the digestive tract. Fecal material is removed by muscular contractions in the walls of the colon, through the digestive tract, and to the rectum. The pressure inside the rectum eventually increases when the rectum becomes full, forcing the walls of the anal canal apart and allowing the fecal material to pass through. The rectum shortens as it disposes materials into the anal canal, propelling the feces out of the rectum with peristaltic