Digestive System Symptoms and Dysphagia

Study Notes

Anorexia, nausea, and vomiting can signal digestive issues or systemic problems like infections or kidney failure.
Vomiting characteristics are helpful in diagnosis. Coffee-ground vomit suggests stomach bleeding, yellow vomit usually comes from the duodenum, deep brown vomit from the jejunum/ileum, and visible blood (frank blood) suggests issues like gastric emptying problems or pyloric obstruction.

Frank blood in stool indicates bleeding in the anal canal or rectum.
Melena, dark stool, suggests bleeding higher in the digestive tract, often in the large intestine. This darkening occurs due to digestion.
Occult blood, hidden blood, needs special tests to detect it.

Causes include neurological issues, muscular problems, and mechanical obstructions.
Specific types of dysphagia include achalasia (esophageal sphincter failure to relax), congenital atresia (disconnected upper/ lower esophagus), stenosis (narrowed esophagus), diverticulum (food trapped in a blind pouch), and esophageal tumors (internal or external compression).

Hiatal hernia is where the esophagus passes through the diaphragm. Axial hiatal hernias affect the whole circumference of the esophagus while para-esophageal affect one side.
GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease) involves stomach contents flowing back into the esophagus, causing burning typically 30-60 minutes after eating.

Acute gastritis involves inflammation of the stomach lining, often caused by aspirin/NSAIDs, chemotherapy, alcohol, or gastric radiation. It is often temporary.
Chronic gastritis is long-term inflammation, commonly caused by H. pylori infections or autoimmune disorders that attack the stomach's parietal cells. This can lead to B12 deficiency.

Peptic ulcer disease involves breakdown of the stomach lining, most commonly found in the duodenum, possible causes include H. Pylori.
Gastric ulcers can also form in the stomach, often caused by H. Pylori or NSAID abuse.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) includes Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Crohn's affects the entire GI tract while ulcerative colitis is limited to the large intestine (mucosa only). Both can cause pain (often alternating with remission) and problems like diarrhea, abdominal pain, or rectal bleeding.
Crohn's disease can affect multiple parts of the digestive tract from mouth to anus, and can impact the inner layers of the walls.
Ulcerative colitis commonly occurs in the descending colon, sigmoid colon and rectum with increasing risk of colon cancer. It's typically characterized by easily bleeding tissue.

Peritonitis inflammatory condition of the peritoneum (lining of the abdomen). It can be caused by various factors, and treatment often involves eliminating the cause.