Blood Mucus in Stool

Blood in stool may occur due to various reasons. The occurrence of blood and mucus in stools is an indication of a grave disease of the digestive tract and should not be taken lightly. This may occur due to an infection of the intestine or, an infection in any part of the digestive tract. The blood may occur as red color in stool (melena), in which case it is mostly indicative of an infection of the intestine. But if the blood mucus in stool appears black, then it means that the infection is of the upper gastrointestinal tract, as the hemoglobin has got oxidized, which can only occur when the blood originates from the upper gastrointestinal tract.

Causes

Diarrhea: More often than not, severe diarrhea is a common cause of this condition. Normally, diarrhea is a condition where there is excessive passage of very watery stools. However, in serious cases of diarrhea, there can be passage of blood and mucus in stool as well. This is especially true in cases of diarrhea that is caused due to parasitic infections of the intestine, or due to severe infections of other parts of the gastrointestinal tract. Most people also show other symptoms, like dehydration, weakness, nausea, and severe irritability.

Intestinal Parasitic Infections: Another most common cause is amebiasis. This is an infectious disease that affects the large intestine, and is mostly contracted when someone eats or drinks contaminated food or water, containing Entamoeba histolytica, an intestinal parasite. In this disease, the amoeba parasites attach themselves to the large intestine and cause serious symptoms like bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramps, stomach pains, loss of appetite, nausea and fever. In the initial stages, mostly there are no symptoms, but if the person's immunity is low, or if the number of amoeba suddenly increase, the symptoms become visible. This condition is contagious, as the blood mucus in stool that is passed contains the parasites, hence, it can contaminate the water that it comes in contact with and spread. Another example of an intestinal parasite is giardiasis, where the causative agent for the condition is a parasite called Giardia lamblia.

Ulcerative Colitis: One of the black stool causes is ulcerative colitis. Ulcertaive colitis is a condition where there is inflammation of the lining of the colon. It is not known as to what exactly is the causative agent for ulcerative colitis. Its symptoms are diarrhea, bloody stools, pain in the abdominal region, fatigue, irritability, loss of appetite, etc.

Bacterial Infection: Bacterial infection of the intestine also can lead to blood mucus in stools. Certain infections, like cholera, which is a waterborne bacterial infection of the intestine, causes mucus and blood in stools and other large intestine problems, like abdominal cramping, loss of appetite, nausea, diarrhea, depression, irritability, etc.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Two diseases that are characterized by inflammation of the intestinal lining, which lead to symptoms like blood in stools, are irritable bowel syndrome and Crohn's disease. In both these diseases, there is nausea, severe abdominal cramps, etc.

Other Causes: Certain other conditions like diverticulitis, or an allergic reaction or a side effect of certain drugs, can lead to symptoms like bloody stools.

Treatment Options

• The treatment will depend upon the condition causing blood mucus in stool. If it is a parasitic intestinal infection, then the patient will be given anti-parasitic prescription drugs, like metronidazole.
• Medicines used specifically to treat diarrhea may also be prescribed in severe cases.
• To counter the loss of fluids and to prevent dehydration, the patient will be asked to drink as much water as possible (preferably boiled water).
• In severe cases, if there are any electrolyte imbalance symptoms seen, the patient may require electrolyte replacement therapy, especially, in cases of children and the elderly.
• The person should try to avoid eating meat, especially red meat, and try to stick to a diet of fruits for the time being.

Thus, this is a serious symptom that needs to be dealt with immediately. The exact cause of this symptom needs to be diagnosed and treated at the earliest, to prevent any further systemic complications.