MID 2 GI Flashcards
Anorexia
- Lack of desire to eat with nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea, psychological stress
- Side effects of medication and disorders of other organs- cancer, heart disease, kidney disease
Emesis (vomiting)
- Forceful emptying of stomach and intestinal contents
- Nausea and retching (dry heaves) are distinct events that usually precede vomiting
- Consequences of nausea and vomiting: fluid and electrolyte imbalances, acid/base disturbance, hyponatremia, hypokalemia, hypochloremia and metabolic alkalosis
Emesis: Caused by
- Extreme pain
- Distension of the stomach or duodenum
- Motion sickness
- Side effects of medications
- Trauma of ovaries, testes, uterus, bladder or kidney
Nausea
- subjective experience
-associated with conditions like abnormal pain and spinning movements
- hypersalivation and tachycardia associated symptoms
Projectile vomiting
- Vomiting without nausea
- Caused by direct stimulation of the vomiting center by neurological lesions (e.g. increased intracranial pressure, tumors, or aneurysms) involving the brainstem or can be a symptom of GI obstruction
Constipation
- Difficult or infrequent defecation/bowel movements
- Subjective- dependant on normal bowel habits
Primary constipation
- Normal transit (functional)- normal rate, but difficult evacuation: sedentary lifestyle, poor diets- low in fibre, high in refined food, low fluid intake
- Slow transit- impaired colonic motor activity with infrequent bowel movements, straining, abdominal distension (swollen) and palpable stool in sigmoid colon
Pelvic floor dysfunction
difficulty with pelvic floor muscles or anal sphincter e.g. rectal fissures, strictures or hemorrhoids
Secondary constipation
- Caused by medications or neurogenic disorders
- Opiates, antacids and iron tend to inhibit bowel motility
- Endocrine or metabolic disorders e.g. hypothyroidism, diabetes mellitus
- Diverticuli, irritable bowel syndrome and pregnancy are associated with constipation
Constipation: Manifestations
- 25% of the time: straining with defecation Lumpy, hard stools, incomplete emptying sensation, manual maneuvers, <3 bowel movements per week
- Fecal impaction (hard, dry stool retained in the rectum) → rectal bleeding, abdominal or cramping pain, nausea and vomiting, weight loss and episodes of diarrhea
- Straining to evacuate stool → engorgement of the hemorrhoidal veins and hemorrhoidal disease or thrombosis with rectal pain, bleeding and itching
- Passage of hard stools can cause painful anal fissures
Diarrhea
- Presence of frequent loose, watery stools
- > 3 loose stools within 24 hours lasting less than 14 days
- very dangerous in children- lower fluid reserves than adults
- Fluid replacement must be with osmotically balanced products
- Large volume diarrhea: caused by excessive amounts of water or secretions or both in the intestines
- Small-volume diarrhea: volume of feces is not increased, usually results from excessive intestinal motility
- Persistent diarrhea: 14 days-4 weeks
- Chronic diarrhea: >4 weeks
Osmotic diarrhea
- Excessive fluid drawn into the intestinal lumen by osmosis
- Caused by: Non-absorbable sugars, full-strength tube feeds, dumping syndrome
Secretory diarrhea
Excessive secretion of fluids by the intestinal mucosa
Motility diarrhea
- Excessive GI motility (motility diarrhea)- 80% fluid is reabsorbed in small intestine
- Caused by: Resection of the small intestine (short bowel syndrome), surgical bypass of an area of the intestine
Diarrhea: Manifestations
- Systemic effects: dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, weight loss
- Infection with diarrhea- fever, with or without vomiting or cramping pain
- Chronic diarrhea caused by IBD- fever, cramping pain and bloody stools
- Malabsorption syndromes- fat in stools, bloating, diarrhea
Abdominal pain
- Presenting symptom of a number of GI diseases
- Caused by stretching (mechanical), inflammation or ischemia
- Can be acute or chronic
- Can be parietal (somatic), visceral or referred
Parietal pain
from parietal peritoneum, more localized and intense than visceral pain, aggravated by movement
Visceral pain
arises from organs themselves, arises from a stimulus (distension, inflammation, ischemia) acting on an abdominal organ, poorly localized, diffuse or vague with a radiating pattern
Referred pain
visceral pain felt at some distance from a disease or affected organ
Upper GI bleed: Where is it
esophagus, stomach, or duodenum
Upper GI bleed: Caused by
- Bleeding varices
- Varicose veins of esophagus (most common)
- Peptic ulcers
- Tear at the esophageal-gastric junction (Mallory-Weiss syndrome) caused by severe retching
Upper GI bleed: Manifestations
hematemesis (vomiting of blood)= emesis of frank, bright red bleeding or dark, grainy digested blood (coffee grounds)
Lower GI bleed: Where is it
Jejunum, ileum, colon or rectum
Lower GI bleed: Caused by
- Polyps
- Diverticulitis
- Inflammatory disease
- Cancer
- Hemorrhoids
Lower GI bleed: Manifestations
- melena= black, tarry, foul-smelling stool- caused by digestion of blood in GI tract
- hematochezia= bright red blood passed from rectum
- Occult bleeding= presence of blood in ordinary stool or gastric secretions, no evidence of it until sent to lab
Massive GI bleed
- Blood volume depletion- hypovolemic shock
- Decreased cardiac output, decreased systolic BP, increased HR
- Compensatory constriction of peripheral arteries
- Compensatory failure
- Decreased blood flow to skin= pallor (pale)
- Decreased blood flow to kidneys= low urine output
- Decreased blood flow to GI= abdominal pain, bowel infarction (death of tissue), liver necrosis
- Decreased blood flow to brain= anxiety, confusion, stupor (numbness), coma
- Decreased coronary blood flow= angina, myocardial infarct, heart failure
Dysphagia
Difficulty swallowing
Achalasia
rare form of dysphagia
Dysphagia and Achalasia: Caused by
- Mechanical obstruction of esophagus- tumors, diverticular herniations
- Functional disorder- neurological or muscular disorders which interfere with voluntary swallowing e.g. cerebrovascular disease, Parkinson’s, MS, muscular dystrophy
Dysphagia and Achalasia: Manifestations
- Stabbing pain at the level of obstruction
- Discomfort after swallowing
- Regurgitation of undigested food
- Unpleasant taste sensation
- Vomiting
- Aspiration
- Anorexia- low weight
Acid reflux (gastroesophageal reflux)
- lower esophageal sphincter (LES) does not properly close, allowing stomach acid to backup, which irritates the lining of the esophagus
- Intermittent/acute
Acid reflux: Manifestations
- Burning sensation in the center of your chest that lasts from several minutes to an hour or two
- A feeling of chest pressure or pain that is worse if you bend over or lie down
- A sour, bitter, or acidic taste in the back of your throat
- A feeling that food is “stuck” in your throat or the middle of your chest
GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease)
- Chronic- acid reflux that does not go away
- Reflux of acid and pepsin from the stomach to the esophagus that causes esophagitis (inflammation of lining of esophagus)
GERD: Caused by
- Abnormalities in LES function (resting tone lower than normal), esophageal motility, gastric motility or emptying
- Vomiting, coughing, lifting, bending, obesity or pregnancy increases abdominal pressure contributing to reflux
GERD: Risk factors
- Age
- Obesity
- hiatal hernia (stomach bulges up into your chest through an opening in diaphragm)
- Medications that relax the LES
Intestinal obstruction and paralytic ileus
- Any condition that prevents the flow of chyme through the intestinal lumen
- Simple obstruction: Mechanical blockage by lesion, most common
- Functional obstruction or Paralytic ileus: Failure of intestinal motility often occurring after intestinal or abdominal surgery, acute pancreatitis, or hypokalemia , inability of the intestines to conduct peristalsis
Small intestine obstruction: Manifestations
- Colicky pains (pain in abdomen)
- Nausea and vomiting
- Pain- severe initially, then diminishes
- If ischemia occurs: the pain loses its colicky character and becomes more constant and severe, sweating (diaphoresis), tachycardia, fever, leukocytosis, abdominal distension (gas accumulating-swelling), rebound tenderness, progression to necrosis, perforation (hole), peritonitis (redness and swelling) and sepsis
Lower in small intestine obstruction: Manifestations
- More pronounced distension
- Greater length of intestine is proximal to obstruction
- Vomiting (late sign)
- Constipation
- Rarely diarrhea
- Increased bowel sounds
Large intestine obstruction: Manifestations
- Hypogastric pain
- Abdominal distension
- Pain varies- dependent on ischemia and peritonitis
- Vomiting (late sign)
Gastritis
Inflammation of gastric mucosa
Acute gastritis: Caused by
injury of the protective mucosal barrier caused by: Medications (NSAIDs), chemicals, H. pylori infection
Acute gastritis: Manifestations
- vague abdominal discomfort
- Epigastric tenderness
- Bleeding
Chronic gastritis
Tends to occur in older adults
Chronic gastritis: Caused by
- Chronic inflammation
- Mucosal atrophy (waste)
- Epithelial metaplasia (replacement of cells by other kinds of cells)
Peptic ulcer disease
Break or ulceration in the protective mucosal lining of the lower esophagus, stomach or duodenum
Peptic ulcer disease: Caused by
- H. pylori bacteria- affects mucous and allows stomach acid to damage lining
- Medications e.g. NSAIDs- irritate and damage lining
Peptic ulcer disease: Risk factors
- Age> 70 years
- Alcohol consumption
- Smoking
- Injury or trauma
Stress ulcer
- Acute form of peptic ulcer that accompanies physiological stress of severe illness or major trauma
- Primary sign of a stress ulcer is bleeding
- Can be classified as ischemic ulcers or Cushing ulcers
Ischemic ulcer
Develop within hours of an event such as hemorrhage, multisystem trauma, severe burns (Curling ulcers- most common site is duodenum), heart failure or sepsis
Cushing ulcer
- Stress ulcer associated with severe brain trauma or brain surgery
- Most common site is stomach
Gastrectomy
- Surgery to remove all or part of the stomach
- Indication for gastrectomy: recurrent or uncontrolled bleeding- perforation of stomach or duodenum
Gastrectomy: Complications
- Dumping syndrome
- Alkaline reflux gastritis
- Diarrhea
- Weight loss
- Anemia- iron malabsorption
Dumping syndrome
- Rapid emptying of residual stomach (stomach component remaining after surgical resection)
- Causes an osmotic shift of fluid from the vascular compartment to the intestinal lumen, which decreases plasma volume → cramping pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, pallor, hypotension
Alkaline reflux gastritis
Inflammation caused by reflux of bile and pancreatic secretions from the duodenum into the stomach → nausea, vomiting bile, epigastric pain
Ulcerative colitis
- Restricted to large intestine - originate in rectum and may extend to entire colon
- Ulcerations (ulcer=sore) of the mucosa in the colon
- Chronic condition
- Peak occurrence 20-40 years of age and then between 50-70
- Men > women
- Possible related to abnormal immune response in the GI tract- genetic factors
- Stress does not cause the disorder but can increase severity
- Can have remission and exacerbation
Mild ulcerative colitis
- Less mucosal involvement
- Fewer bowel movement