bowel obstruction

Bowel obstruction describes a blockage in the bowels.

 

The bowels can become blocked for many reasons. When the bowels become blocked, the food and fluids taken in through the mouth become trapped inside the gut. Eventually, this leads to symptoms in an affected person.

 

The symptoms and their severity depend on where in the bowels the blockage is located. Symptoms are also determined by the underlying cause, and may include:

 

Bowel obstruction can be caused by many different things. These include: scar tissue in the abdomen, often called adhesions. This tissue can link a piece of bowel. The contents of the bowel are prevented from moving normally through the intestine.bowel that twists on itself or develops a bad kink. This is known as "volvulus".fecal impaction (hard stool that cannot pass through the bowel)cancer, such as colon cancer or cancer of the pancreas infection of the bowel. This can be from colitis, which is an infection of the colon lining, or diverticulitis, which is an infection of small pouches that can develop in the wall of the colon.inflammation or swelling of the bowel from any cause. An example is inflammatory bowel disease (i.e., Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis) conditions that result in inflammation of the intestines.lack of blood supply to the bowel, such as from a condition called ischemic colitis

Usually, nothing can be done to prevent a bowel obstruction. A person who has had an obstruction from hard stools may be given stool softeners to prevent a repeat obstruction.

The person's medical history and physical exam often suggest a bowel obstruction. Standard x-rays of the abdomen are most commonly used to confirm the diagnosis. In some cases, other tests may be needed to find the cause of the blockage. For example, a special x-ray test called an abdominal CT scan may be used if diverticulitis is suspected.