Bleeding or blood loss through the gastrointestinal tract can be a serious acute or chronic condition that can be life-threatening.

There are multiple causes of gastrointestinal bleeding and its origin can be divided into two groups: bleeding originating in the upper digestive tract (esophagus, stomach, and duodenum) and bleeding originating from the lower gastrointestinal tract (small intestine (jejunum and ileum), colon, rectum, and canal). anal).

In all cases, medical attention is required to assess the severity of the condition and try to determine its origin and treatment.

There are multiple causes of bleeding originating from the gastrointestinal tract, among the most common are: ulcers and erosions, malignant and benign tumors, malformation of veins and arteries, diverticula and hemorrhoids.

Each of these entities have specific characteristics that guide the doctor to suspect what the origin is. Depending on the amount and speed of blood loss is the symptomatology that will appear.

When the bleeding is small but chronic, the symptoms may be null and can only be identified by finding anemia in a blood count.

On the contrary, if the bleeding is extensive, the symptoms are florid and can be very spectacular, manifesting with black, vinous red or red stools, vomiting blood or in "coffee wells", great general malaise, paleness, dizziness to change position, shortness of breath, fatigue, syncope, etc.

There are several endoscopic, radiological and nuclear medicine studies that are used to determine the site and cause of gastrointestinal bleeding, which are often complementary.

1. Upper digestive tract endoscopy and colonoscopy are the most commonly used studies to determine the site and cause of bleeding with the great advantage of being able to perform endoscopic treatments to stop bleeding, including the use of hemoclips, ligation, different thermal methods, injection of different substances etc.

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3. If with these 2 studies the origin of the bleeding is not found, we are obliged to study the small intestine, using capsule endoscopy and/or balloon enteroscopy, this last method also has the power to offer corrective therapy.

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5. Radiological and nuclear medicine methods are almost always complementary to endoscopic studies. The most useful are computed axial tomography of mesenteric vessels, arterionography of the celiac trunk, and scintigraphy of labeled erythrocytes.