Bloody Diarrhea Case Study
Which essential questions will you ask a pediatric patient or his or her caregiver when the presenting complaint is bloody diarrhea? Will these questions vary depending upon the child’s age? Why or why not? What clinical or historical findings will indicate the need for diagnostic studies and why? Which diagnostic studies will you initially order and why?
When caring for a pediatric patient with complaints of bloody diarrhea asking appropriate questions to narrow the diagnosis and identify the severity of the condition is important. Questions to include, when did the diarrhea start and how long has the symptoms been present? What does the patient’s diet consist of? How much blood in noted in the stool? What color is the stool and blood bright …show more content…
The most common cause of bloody diarrhea in a neonate may include hemorrhagic disease, allergic colitis or necrotizing enterocolitis. In infants older than 15 days causes may contributed to anal fissures, a cow’s milk allergy or a physiological condition like intussusception (AAP, n.d.). In this age group a bacterial cause is less likely but if suspected the most common cause is Shigella (AAP, n.d.). In young children bloody diarrhea is a common sign of an invasive enteric infection which may cause severe dehydration and malnourishment leading to bloody diarrhea (AAP, n.d.). The common infecting agents are Campylobacter, Salmonella, Yersinia, Shigella and E. coli. While bacterial infections may also be present in older children and inflammatory bowel disorders in younger children, older children with bloody diarrhea are more likely to have bloody diarrhea secondary to an inflammatory bowel condition like ulcerative colitis or crohn disease (AAP, …show more content…
she presented with complaints of vomiting and diarrhea x 2 days. Her mother denied fever or complaints of abdominal pain. Her history provided by her mother and physical examination revealed a self-limiting diagnosis as she had a normal physical examination and mother reported she was tolerating fluids with her sister suffering from the same symptoms lasting two days. Her differentials include viral gastroenteritis, bacterial gastroenteritis and parasitic gastroenteritis.
How do the common causes of vomiting differ in infants, children, and adolescents? What clinical or historical findings will indicate the need for diagnostic studies and why? Which diagnostic studies will you initially order and
When caring for a pediatric patient with complaints of bloody diarrhea asking appropriate questions to narrow the diagnosis and identify the severity of the condition is important. Questions to include, when did the diarrhea start and how long has the symptoms been present? What does the patient’s diet consist of? How much blood in noted in the stool? What color is the stool and blood bright …show more content…
The most common cause of bloody diarrhea in a neonate may include hemorrhagic disease, allergic colitis or necrotizing enterocolitis. In infants older than 15 days causes may contributed to anal fissures, a cow’s milk allergy or a physiological condition like intussusception (AAP, n.d.). In this age group a bacterial cause is less likely but if suspected the most common cause is Shigella (AAP, n.d.). In young children bloody diarrhea is a common sign of an invasive enteric infection which may cause severe dehydration and malnourishment leading to bloody diarrhea (AAP, n.d.). The common infecting agents are Campylobacter, Salmonella, Yersinia, Shigella and E. coli. While bacterial infections may also be present in older children and inflammatory bowel disorders in younger children, older children with bloody diarrhea are more likely to have bloody diarrhea secondary to an inflammatory bowel condition like ulcerative colitis or crohn disease (AAP, …show more content…
she presented with complaints of vomiting and diarrhea x 2 days. Her mother denied fever or complaints of abdominal pain. Her history provided by her mother and physical examination revealed a self-limiting diagnosis as she had a normal physical examination and mother reported she was tolerating fluids with her sister suffering from the same symptoms lasting two days. Her differentials include viral gastroenteritis, bacterial gastroenteritis and parasitic gastroenteritis.
How do the common causes of vomiting differ in infants, children, and adolescents? What clinical or historical findings will indicate the need for diagnostic studies and why? Which diagnostic studies will you initially order and