Week 8 GI Flashcards
GI red flags in adult/children
- Rectal bleeding
- Weight loss
- Unexplained fever
- Anemia
- GI malignancy
- Nocturnal diarrhea (ulcerative colitis)
- Acute bowel changes in > 50 yrs old
- Bowel shape, freq, caliber of movement
- Abdominal mass
- Persistent vomiting
- Jaundice
- Dysphagia
- Ordynophagia - ongoing GERD sx or GI malignancy
- Perianal disease
- Perianal abscess or fistula
- Arthritis
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Bilious emesis
- Jaundice
- Hematemesis
- Family hx of colon cancer
- Poor weight gain / linear growth
- Absent pubertal changes
- mass, blood in stool
Crohns disease
- Chronic inflammation of GI tract with extraintestinal sx’s
- environmental trigger
- mouth to the anus (primarily in ileocolon)
- skipped lesions, cobblestone with granulomas, fissured lesions
- “Transmural” = involves the WHOLE thickness of the colon; all layers
- “Cron skipped on the cobblestone”
Crohns on exam
- Cardinal sxs: abdominal pain, diarrhea (bleeding), fatigue, and SIGNIFICANT weight loss
- Growth failure
- Vague cramping
- Erythema nodosum, psoriasis
- Uveitis, episcleritis
- Oral ulcers/canker sore
- Decreased ROM, polyarthritis, sacrolitlits
- Rectal fissures, fistulas
crohns treatment
- mild/remission: mesalamine (aminosalicylates)
- mod-severe: corticosteroids
- immunosupppresants
- immunomodulators: infiximab (induction/maintenance)
- antibiotics: fistulas or C diff
Crohns diagnostics
- CBC, CRP, ESR, CMP (kidney function, electrolytes, glucose), vitamin b12, folate, iron
- calprotectin (confirms bowel inflammation)
- Albumin for blood loss
- Stool for ova and parasites, fecal leukocytes, C. Diff.
- Abdominal CT or MRI to monitor
- Endoscopy (cobblestone)
Ulcerative colitis
- chronic inflammation of colonic mucosa or submucosal layer in colon and rectum only
- “_Co_litis _Co_ntinuous” lesions
ulcerative colitis systemic sx’s
- fatigue, sometimes weight loss
- hematochezia (massive hemorrhage)
- stool blood/mucus
- Arthritis
- Erythema nodosum, pyoderma gangrenosum, oral ulcers
- Clubbing
- uveitis, scleritis
- Sclerosing cholangitis
- Autoimmune hemolytic anemia
- Venous and arterial thromboembolism
risk factors for colon cancer
- Age > 50
- longer duration of disease
- younger onset
- severity of inflammation
- primary sclerosis cholangitits
- Family history of colorectal cancer
- Inflammatory bowel dz
- Smoking
- Familial polyposis syndrome
if patient has 1st degree relative with colon cancer, when to start screening?
10 years prior to 1st degree relative’s diagnosis, then every 5 years thereafter
when does risk for colon cancer increase? when to screen?
- age > 50 yrs
- prior colorectal cancer
- ulcerative coliitis
- genetics
- familial polyposis syndrome
- long term cigarette smoking
- high fat high caloric diet
risk can increase 7-8 yrs after disease onset w/ risk of 0.5% per year after
- after diagnosis, screen 7-8 years post diagnosis then next 2-3 years
once in remission for IBD, more likely to relapse but also want to evaluate for
infectious causes Salmonella
- Shigella
- Campylobacter
- Clostridium difficile
- Yersinia
- Amebiasis
- Escherichia coli 0:157:H7
- STIs including Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis
risk factors for UC
- History of Campylobacter infection
- A first-degree relative with ulcerative colitis
- History of nontyphoid Salmonella infection
SMOKING is NOT a risk factor but it is for Crohn’s disease
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) diagnosis: Rome IV
Rome IV
- recurrent abdominal pain at least 1x/week x 3 months, with 2 or more of:
- with defecation
- Change in freq of stools
- change in form/look of stool (Bristol stool scale)
- symptom onset at least 6 months before diagnosis
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) diagnosis: Manning criteria
3 or more:
- feeling of incomplete evacuation;
- passage of mucus;
- visible abdominal distention;
- pain relief with defecation;
- looser stool at pain onset;
- more frequent stools at pain onset.
diagnosing functional bowel disorder always assumes there are NO
structural, biochemical, organic explanation for the symptoms
IBS patho
- altered gut reactivity (motility, secretion)
- hypersensitive gut with enhanced visceral perception and pain
- disordered gut-brain interaction
- other:
- altered inflammatory mediators
- altered gut serotonin regulation
- bacterial overgrowth
- genetic predisposition
IBS workup
- assess for any alarm/red flags
- if none, get stool hemoccult & CBC
- ESR, CMP, stool studies depend on clinical pic
- lactose free diet (r/o lactose intolerance)
- if > 50 & didn’t get routine colon cancer screening OR have red flags = get colonoscopy
if have IBS-C (constipation), what workup?
- therapeutic trial of fiber
- consider partial colonic obstruction or non IBS causes of dysmotility too
if have IBS-D (diarrhea), what workup?
- get stool culture, ova and parasites, celiac sprue/dz workup, or bowel biopsy (depending on clinical picture).
- If new symptom onset 45 years or older = colonoscopy to rule out microscopic colitis
- if negative, consider therapeutic trial of loperamide
if have IBS pain predominant, what workup?
- get abdominal x-ray
- if negative for small bowel obstruction (SBO), consider therapeutic trial of an antispasmodic medication
IBS treatment for mild sx’s
IBS med treatment for moderate to severe sx’s for IBS-C:
- increased dietary fiber (25g/day) – soluble fiber > insoluble
- polyethylene glycol (MiraLAX) – osmotic laxative
- lubiprostone – chloride channel activator that increases intestinal fluid secretion to improve intestinal transit5
- linaclotide– guanylate cyclase c agonist; increased intestinal chloride and bicarbonate secretion leads to acceleration of intestinal transit, may also have analgesic effect
- plecanatide – guanylate cyclase c agonist
IBS med treatment for moderate to severe sx’s for IBS-D:
- loperamide – antidiarrheal, inhibits peristalsis; PRN
- alosetron – 5-HT receptor antagonist, decreases colonic motility. Approved for use in women with severe IBS-D who have failed conservative treatment for greater than 6 months. Adverse events include ischemic colitis and severe constipation.
- eluxadoline – mu-opioid receptor agonist + delta opioid receptor antagonist + kappa opioid receptor agonist; reduces visceral pain and diarrhea with constipation side effect. Avoid use in patients who do not have a gallbladder, carries FDA warning for risk of pancreatitis.
IBS med treatment for moderate to severe sx’s for IBS pain predominant
- hyoscyamine, dicyclomine, peppermint oil – antispasmodics that reduce smooth muscle contractions and visceral hypersensitivity
- antidepressants (TCAs, SSRIs )
- antibiotic (Rifaximin) – alters gut microbiota; given as 2-week course
- probiotics
IBS psychological treatment (when sx severe enough to impair QOL)
-
Cognitive behavioral therapy, dynamic psychotherapy, hypnosis and stress management, and relaxation
- effective in reducing abdominal pain and diarrhea (but not constipation) and anxiety
-
Tricyclic antidepressants
- alters GI physiology, has neuromodulatory effects and analgesic properties
- if abdominal pain is frequent or severe
- most commonly used is amitriptyline, desipramine
-
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
- same as TCA; abdominal pain
- safer and have fewer side effects than TCAs. fluoxetine, paroxetine, duloxetine, and sertraline.
if no GI red flags, and have abdominal pain with defecation,
don’t need routine testing for IBS
in pediatric, constipation presents as
- hard or pebble like stools
- parental reports of excessive straining or pain during efforts to pass stool
- infants may also have a very wide range of normal stool frequency, including only 1 stool a week
< 4 month infants can use what as an osmotic agent?
- corn syrup
- fructose and sorbital = harder to digest, osmotic laxative in fruit juice, prune juice
Hirschsprung disease aka aganglionosis
- extreme form of slow-transit constipation
- bowel narrows at the areas that lack of slow transit
- seen on contrast studies.
- can see at birth if meconium is not passed in the first 48 hours of life but 60% with Hirschsprung will be dx’ed OUT of neonatal period.
Hirschsprung disease sx’s
- recurrent abdominal distention
- emesis
- failure to thrive
- acute enterocolitis
Hirschsprung disease diagnosis & treatment
- rectal biopsy & histologic exam via suction technique
- treatment: surgical removal of affected portion of intestine
causes/types of chronic constipation
- Normal-transit (functional) constipation
- Slow-transit constipation
- Rectal evacuation (defecatory) disorders
Normal-transit (functional) constipation
- a normal system that may have transient alterations leading to constipation (majority of pt)
- tx: increasing fiber or osmotic laxative
- if fails, indication of altered transit times, further management
Slow-transit constipation
- reduced motility due to individual differences in bowel function
- young females after puberty
- diet can cause low stool volumes
- tx: stimulant laxatives
- increase intestinal motility and secretions BUT cramp/dependence long term
Rectal evacuation (defecatory) disorders
variations that limit or inhibit normal passage of stool out of the body
would you recommend diet and exercise for chronic constipation?
NO! is NOT effective with chronic constipation unless dehydration is the source of sx’s
Osmotic laxatives and poorly absorbed sugars (polyethylene glycol or lactulose) MOA
- drawing water into the intestines along an osmotic gradient
- take several days to work; less likely to cause the bloating and flatus of fiber, or the cramping
- caution with sensitive electrolyte or volume status (renal or heart failure) as absorption of sodium, magnesium, or phosphorus is possible.
- Dehydration!
stimulant laxatives (Senna) MOA
- promote intestinal motility and secretions
- work quickly, hours, but abdominal cramping