Causes Of Lower Gastrointestinal Bleeding On Colonoscopy

Area of Science:

• Gastroenterology
• Colorectal Surgery
• Internal Medicine

Background:

• Rectal bleeding, defined as bleeding distal to the ligament of Treitz, is a common clinical presentation.
• Understanding the etiological spectrum of rectal bleeding is crucial for appropriate patient management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the frequency of various causes of rectal bleeding in patients presenting to Ayub Teaching Hospital, Abbottabad.
• To analyze the diagnostic yield of colonoscopy in evaluating patients with rectal bleeding.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 175 patients with rectal bleeding underwent fiber optic colonoscopy.
• Exclusion criteria included suspected upper GI bleeding, infectious diarrhea, and coagulopathy.
• Diagnoses were confirmed by colonoscopic findings and biopsy when indicated.

Main Results:

• Colonoscopy revealed abnormal findings in 85.7% of patients.
• Hemorrhoids were the most frequent diagnosis (22.3%), followed by inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) (17.1%).
• Other significant findings included polyps (14.3%) and solitary rectal ulcers (7.4%).

Conclusions:

• Hemorrhoids are the predominant cause of rectal bleeding in this population.
• Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is the second most common cause.
• Polyps and diverticuli appear to be less common etiologies in this region.