Altered Bowel Habits Flashcards
What is the general function of duodenum?
Chemical digestion
What is the general function of the jejunum?
Absorbs nutrients
What is the general function of the ileum?
Absorbs bile salts, water, B12 and electrolytes
What are the characteristics of diarrhea?
- High stool frequency (more than 3/day)
- More than 200g of stool/day
- Abnormally loose stool
What are some alarm signs with diarrhea?
- Severe abdominal pain
- Fevers
- Recent hospitalization or antimicrobial use
What populations is diarrhea a major concern in?
- Elderly
- Immunocompromised
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease
- Pregnant patients
Steatorrhea
- Fat excretion more than 14g/day
* Bulky, oily, malodorous stools
What are some of the causes of steatorrhea?
- Small intestine bacterial overgrowth
- Celiac disease
- Whipple’s disease
- Pancreatic insufficiency
What are some of the causes of Secretory Diarrhea?
- Bile acid malabsorption
- NSAIDS, colchicine
- Noninvasive infections - cholera
What are some the key findings with secretory diarrhea?
- fails to improve with fasting
- stool osmotic gap less than 50
- no steatorrhea
Osmotic Diarrhea
Usually malabsorption of carbohydrates
• Lactose intolerance (most common)
• Also fructose, sorbitol, etc.
What are the key signs of osmotic diarrhea?
- improves with fasting
- stool osmotic gap greater than 100
- no steatorrhea
What are the clinical signs of inflammatory diarrhea?
Abdominal pain, bleeding, fever, weight loss
What are some of the causes of inflammatory diarrhea?
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease
* Ischemia
Motility Related Diarrhea
Rapid transit decreases the amount of time for water absorption
