Symptoms of Diarrhoea

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Symptoms of diarrhoea
Diarrhoea can have a number of associated symptoms depending on the cause and who is
affected.
In terms of severity, you may only have slightly watery stools and a brief upset stomach, or your
stools may be very watery for a prolonged period.
Many people with diarrhoea experience stomach cramps and a frequent, urgent need to go to the
toilet. Other common symptoms associated with diarrhoea include:
 nausea and vomiting
 headache
 loss of appetite
When to contact your GP
The advice about when to contact your GP varies depending on who is affected.
Babies
You should contact your GP or health visitor immediately if your baby has had six or more
episodes of diarrhoea in the past 24 hours.
Children
Contact your GP if your child has:
 had six or more episodes of diarrhoea in the past 24 hours
 diarrhoea and vomiting at the same time
 particularly watery diarrhoea
 blood in their diarrhoea
 diarrhoea that lasts more than two weeks (it usually passes within five to seven days)
Adults
You should visit your GP if you have:
 diarrhoea and have recently been in hospital
 recently been treated with antibiotics
 diarrhoea that has blood in it
 diarrhoea and persistent vomiting
 unexplained weight loss
 bleeding from your rectum (back passage)
 passed a large amount of very watery diarrhoea – you may be at risk of dehydration
 diarrhoea at night that is disturbing your sleep
 diarrhoea that lasts longer than a week (it usually passes within two to four days)
Dehydration
Severe or persistent diarrhoea can cause dehydration.
In children, symptoms of dehydration include:
 irritability or drowsiness
 passing urine infrequently
 pale or mottled skin
 cold hands and feet
 feeling increasingly unwell
In adults, symptoms of dehydration include:
 tiredness and a lack of energy
 loss of appetite
 nausea
 feeling lightheaded
 dizziness, particularly when standing up
 dry tongue
 sunken eyes
 muscle cramps
 rapid heartbeat
Read more about the symptoms of dehydration.
Page last reviewed: 28/11/2012
Next review due: 28/11/2014
Diarrhea is a condition that involves the frequent passing of loose or watery stools - it is the
opposite of constipation and can have many causes, which may be infectious or non-
infectious.

Diarrhea comes from the Greek word diarrhoia. Dia means "through" and rheo means "flow".
The term "flowing through" was coined by Hippocrates.

Spelling: In American English it is spelled "diarrhea", and in British English it is "diarrhoea".

Acute diarrhea, meaning diarrhea that is not long-term, is a very common cause death in
developing nations, especially among young children and babies. It usually appears rapidly and
may last from between five to ten days.

Chronic diarrhea, meaning long-term diarrhea is the second cause of death among children in
developing countries.

People with diarrhea often have fever and/or stomachache (abdominal cramps). Diarrhea may be
caused by inflammatory bowel syndrome (IBS), Crohn's disease, an allergy, or an infection.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) approximately 3.5 million deaths each year
are attributable to diarrhea. 80% of those deaths occur in children under the age of 5 years.
Children are more susceptible to the complications of diarrhea because a smaller amount of fluid
loss leads to dehydration, compared to adults.

A bacterium called enteroaggregative E. coli, is responsible for 10 percent of cases of diarrhea in
children, researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, USA, found.
What are the five types of diarrhea?
 Secretory diarrhea

Either the gut is secreting more fluids than usual, or it cannot absorb fluids properly. In
such cases structural damage is minimal. This is most commonly caused by a cholera
toxin - a protein secreted by the bacterium Vibrio cholera.

 Osmotic diarrhea

Too much water is drawn into the bowels. This may be the result of celiac disease,
pancreatic disease, or laxatives. Too much magnesium, vitamin C, undigested lactose, or
undigested fructose can also trigger osmotic diarrhea.

 Motility-related diarrhea

Food moves too quickly through the intestines (hypermotility). If the food moves too
quickly there is not enough time to absorb sufficient nutrients and water. Patients who
had a vagotomy (removal or severing of the vagus nerve) as well as those with diabetic
neuropathy are susceptible to this type of diarrhea.

 Inflammatory diarrhea

The lining of the gut becomes inflamed. This is usually caused by bacterial infections,
viral infections, parasitic infections, or autoimmune problems such as IBS (inflammatory
bowel disease). Tuberculosis, colon cancer and enteritis can also cause inflammatory
diarrhea.

 Dysentery

The presence of blood in the stools is usually a sign of dysentery, rather than diarrhea.
Dysentery is caused by a release of excess water caused by an antidiuretic hormone from
the posterior pituitary gland. Dysentery is one of the symptoms of Shigella, Entamoeba
histolytica, and Salmonella.
Digestive health centre
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Diarrhoea: Symptoms, treatment and prevention
What is diarrhoea?
Diarrhoea is having more frequent, loose, watery poo, which may be referred to as 'stools'.

You may get diarrhoea after being in contact with someone else who has it, or you may get it
from food poisoning - after eating contaminated food or drinking contaminated water.

Almost everyone has diarrhoea at some point in his or her life, including on holiday abroad,
called traveller's diarrhoea.

Diarrhoea that comes on suddenly and lasts for no longer than a couple of days is usually
referred to as "acute diarrhoea". Most people with acute diarrhoea recover on their own.
Diarrhoea that lasts more than two weeks is thought of as "chronic diarrhoea". Typically, chronic
diarrhoea requires medical care to find the underlying cause and treat complications, such as
dehydration.
What causes diarrhoea?
Many different problems can cause diarrhoea. Here are the major causes:
You are most likely to come down with diarrhoea after coming into contact with these infectious
organisms and agents:
 A virus, such as rotavirus, winter vomiting disease (Norwalk virus or norovirus),
enterovirus, or a hepatitis virus.
 A bacterium, such as E. coli, salmonella, shigella, C.diff (clostridium), or cholera (Vibrio
cholerae).
 A parasite, such as those that cause giardiasis and amoebiasis.
The length of time diarrhoea lasts often depends on what caused it. Diarrhoea from norovirus
lasts around two days, for rotavirus, the duration is three to eight days, Campylobacter and
salmonella infections may last two to seven days and diarrhoea from giardiasis can several
weeks.
Other medical conditions
A number of non-infectious medical conditions may cause diarrhoea, too. These include:
 Inability to digest certain foods, including a lactose intolerance (difficulty digesting the
type of sugar found in dairy products); coeliac disease (an intolerance of gluten in wheat
and some other grains); and pancreatic problems, such as those caused by cystic fibrosis,
which interfere with production of important digestive substances.
 Surgery to remove part of your intestine. A shortened intestine may be unable to absorb
all the substances you eat. This is referred to as short-bowel syndrome.
 The after-effects of surgery to remove the gallbladder. An increase in bile in the colon
may result in watery stools.
 Certain diseases of the endocrine (hormonal) system, including thyroid disease, diabetes,
adrenal disease, and Zollinger-Ellison syndrome.
 Certain rare tumours (including carcinoid tumour and pheochromocytoma) that produce
diarrhoea-causing substances.
 Inflammation in the intestinal tract, which can result in chronic diarrhoea. If you have
inflammatory bowel disease (such as ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease), you will have
bouts of diarrhoea during flare-ups of your disease.
 Pouches of the intestinal wall in diverticular disease can lead to diarrhoea, especially if
they become infected and inflamed ( diverticulitis)
 Irritable bowel syndrome, which may cause alternating bouts of diarrhoea and
constipation.
 Bowel cancer produces a change in bowel habit that may include diarrhoea or alternating
diarrhoea and constipation.

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