Rectal Bleeding
What is Rectal Bleeding?
Looking down into a toilet and seeing blood can be alarming. Your mind might go to many places as alarm bells ring that something is wrong. This is often rectal bleeding. A symptom of many different medical conditions, rectal bleeding can vary from being mild to being a sign of a serious condition like colorectal cancer. If you’re experiencing rectal bleeding, you might see blood in a few different ways — on your toilet paper as you wipe, in the water of the toilet bowl or in your poop. It can be different colors, ranging from bright red to a dark maroon to black.
What are the symptoms of rectal bleeding?
Some symptoms you might have with rectal bleeding can include:
1. Feeling rectal pain and/or pressure.
2. Seeing bright red blood in or on your stool, underwear, toilet paper or in the toilet bowl.
3. Having stool that’s red, maroon or black in color.
4. Having stool that has a tar-like appearance.
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What causes rectal bleeding?
Causes of rectal bleeding can include:
1. Hemorrhoids: The most common cause of rectal bleeding, hemorrhoids are swollen veins in the rectum (internal hemorrhoids) or the anus (external hemorrhoids). You can develop hemorrhoids for many reasons, including chronic constipation, straining during bowel movements, pregnancy, lifting heavy objects, having anal intercourse and having a higher body weight (obesity). Hemorrhoids aren’t a medical emergency and the blood you may see on your toilet paper or in the toilet bowel isn’t something to be majorly concerned about.
2. Anal fissure: Sometimes confused for a hemorrhoid, an anal fissure is a split or tear in the skin around the anus. This happens when you have very hard stool that’s difficult to pass. The extra pressure of the bowel movement causes the skin to split open. An anal fissure can cause you to see blood when you go to the bathroom, as well as feel burning during bowel movements. Anal fissures usually go away on their own over time.
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2. Anal fissure: Sometimes confused for a hemorrhoid, an anal fissure is a split or tear in the skin around the anus. This happens when you have very hard stool that’s difficult to pass. The extra pressure of the bowel movement causes the skin to split open. An anal fissure can cause you to see blood when you go to the bathroom, as well as feel burning during bowel movements. Anal fissures usually go away on their own over time.
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