Understanding Bloody Stool With Mucus: Causes, Diagnosis and Treatment

Seeing if there is blood or mucus when you wake up and cleaning your bowels can be annoying. If this is your contention, it would be best for you to reach out to your doctor. That can be due to several conditions like ulcers and infections that viruses and bacteria can cause. These can be related to rectal cancer or colon cancer as well.

Therefore, it is important to understand the causes of mucus blood (known as hematochezia in medical terms) in the stools. You can also get treatments like developing different medications to relieve yourself of the pain in the stools. This blog will look at the various causes of Bloody stool with mucus.

What is mucus in stool?

The mucus or the jelly-type substance in the stools that is produced by the body to protect the tissues and organs, and it can help lubricate the tissues and the organs mucus helps in reducing the damage caused by bacteria and fungi or viruses these can assist in the protection of the intestines against many harmful fluids and stomach acids.

So a minimal quantity of mucus in the stools is usually not a thing to be worried about, but if the stool contains too much mucus, then you should get the colon lubricated and need to get a check-up.

If there is an increase in the mucus in the stool, there may also be bleeding in the stools. So, you will need to get the bowels checked and take care of the prescriptions as and when mentioned by the doctors.

If you want to know when to get in touch with the doctors if you have blood in the stools along with mucus and pain in the belly, then you should get in touch with your doctor.

What are the causes of Bloody stool with mucus?

The different causes for mucus-covered blood in the stool can be:-

1. Ulcerative colitis -

Ulcerative colitis is an inflammation of the bowels. An unusually long-term disorder produces inflammation in the rectum or large intestines. These can be dealing with diarrhea, tiredness, or an abundance of mucus in bloody stool.

2. Crohn's disease -

Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel disease affecting the gastrointestinal system. Some early signs can be diarrhea, stool cramping, and abnormal bowel syndrome. This can be linked to diarrhea, a symptom of IBS.

3. Intestinal infections-

Intestinal infection can also lead to the development of rectal bleeding with mucus. That can be due to salmonella and shigellosis. That can occur due to consuming contaminated foods, and Clostridium infection can cause severe and even life-threatening diarrhea. It can be destructive and often has mucus.

4. Food poisoning-

Several flu-like symptoms and the stools can have blood and mucus, and you have a food position. It usually clears up within days.

5. Colon cancer and Rectal cancer-

Colon or rectal cancer causes symptoms like mucus-covered bloody stool, rectal bleeding, sudden decrease in weight, and other issues like malabsorption, a condition that occurs when the bowel finds it challenging to absorb the nutrition in the body, and these constitutions can lead to lactose intolerance and celiac disease.

6. Proctitis-

That is an inflammation in the lower part of the intestine called the rectum, and sexually transmitted infections or food-borne illnesses can cause this blood and stool in mucus.

7. Anal fissures and fistula -

An abscess of infection in the perianal area of the human body can cause pockets of mucous colitis inside the body that can occur in people with Crohn's disease. In some cases, there can be abscesses that can get large and can form a tunnel between organs or between skin and organs. Ostomy is a surgical procedure that can credit alternative ways for the urine and feces to leave the body, and after the operation, the waste is passed through the rectum and still can produce fluids. This fluid can build up and may help pass stools.

8. Bacterial infections -

Some bacterial infections, such as campylobacter, can cause hemorrhagic diarrhea in the blood and may require medical attention. So keep an eye on the causes of bloody diarrhea with mucus and other infections that might be the reasons for the same. Bowel obstruction can sometimes be caused due to hernia, adhesions, gallstones, and tumors, and swallowing of an object that is not food obstructs the passages of the bowels, which can lead to obstacles carrying the blood-streaked mucus in stool.

When should you seek medical help?

You should seek medical help when:-

• You notice blood and mucus in stool for the first time
• You notice an increased amount of mucus in the stool
• it is happening regularly
• You notice any significant change in bowel habits
• the stool mixed with blood and mucus is accompanied by gastrointestinal bleeding.
• You have the following conditions: stomach cramping, persistent diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, blood in the stool, and weight loss.

Diagnosis of Actual Condition

To diagnose and pinpoint the actual root cause of bloody stool with mucus, your healthcare provider will start by asking some questions related to your medical history and bowel movement patterns in the past and what has changed now. Based on what you told your doctor, he will perform some medical tests to help assess the actual condition. The tests may include:-

• A Stool culture test in which a sample of your stool will be collected and sent for lab tests to examine the actual condition.
• Blood tests in which samples of your blood are collected and sent for lab tests to examine or diagnose related conditions such as anemia which is very common in digestive conditions like Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
• Imaging tests such as X-rays, CT scans, and in some cases, even MRI scans to ascertain the internal conditions of your Gastrointestinal tract.
• Highly advanced tests such as Endoscopy which includes colonoscopy to view the inside of your colon and rectum.
• A rectal culture test in which your doctor will take a swab off your rectum to check for a sample of any bacteria that might be there.

How is a bloody stool with mucus treated?

Bloody stool with mucus can be due to an underlying condition that can require treatment carried out depending on the type of diagnosis. It can play a mild role in lifestyle changes that can rely on the diagnosis of the condition. Various lifestyle changes can also help with colorectal irritation in the stools.

Mucus in stools can be a symptom of an underlying condition. Hence, it is essential to treat those conditions after diagnosis to deal with mucus in stools, and you should keep the below points in mind.

• If it is mild, then lifestyle changes can play a significant role in resolving the problems of a major role, and these changes can be made by increasing the intake of fluids like drinking water and oral resolves.

• Consume products rich in probiotics, like curd and probiotic capsules.

• Try to shift focus to nutrition-balanced meals.

• Patients who have a chronic condition should get in touch with their doctors.

• Adopt simple workouts that can help soothe the body, like yoga.

• Start going for regular walks in the park and try to walk for at least thirty minutes a day.

• Start eating food and vegetables with more fiber, like cucumber, spinach, etc., than potatoes and other starchy vegetables.

• Start doing activities outdoors to get some fresh air.

• Practice yoga and meditation to relieve any stress.

• Start taking the medication per the prescription to help deal with rectal discharge (mucus with blood in stool) and intestinal inflammation.

Conclusion-

Though, there can be different reasons for the development of blood in the mucus in the stool, like Ulcer, cancer, food poisoning, and infection. The patients need to understand the causes of the pain in their rectum. Different diagnostic measures can help eliminate various reasons for fecal matter containing blood and mucus orBloody stool with mucus.

The doctors then will be able to advise some methods of dealing with the pain, blood, and mucus in the stools, and these can include therapies, medication, and surgeries. However, surgeries are required in significantly fewer cases. Thus, it will be best to make sure you have an appointment with the best gastroenterologist who can deal with this condition.