persistent diarrhea Archives - Healthhype

Diarrhea Due To Unknown Causes (Idiopathic Diarrhea)

Dr. Chris — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 19:23:59 +0000

Normal Gastrointestinal Motility Food that is consumed undergoes both mechanical and chemical digestion in the alimentary tract. Nutrients are absorbed in the process and water and mucus are mixed with the ingested food at almost every part of the alimentary tract. Large amounts of water are then absorbed in the large intestine thereby transforming the liquid residual matter that enters the colon into a firm yet soft material by the time it reaches the descending colon. This residual and waste material is known as feces and is subsequently evacuated from the body during defecation. In order to facilitate this process, food, chyme (digested food) and residual nutrients with waste has to pass from the mouth to the anus. This movement is achieved by the action of the muscles throughout the alimentary tract in a coordinated process known as peristalsis. Gastrointestinal motility is largely the same in every part of the alimentary tract as described under esophageal motility, intestinal motility and colonic motility. It is also similar in the stomach although the action of the pyloric pump in gastric emptying regulates the passage of chyme into the duodenum of the small intestine. The time that it takes for food to move [...]

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Causes of Chronic (Prolonged, Persistent, Constant) Diarrhea

Jan Modric — Wed, 06 May 2009 18:40:01 +0000

Diarrhea is a common digestive symptom that affects every person at some point in life. It may occur several times in a year. Usually diarrhea is acute meaning that it lasts for a short period of time but tends to be severe. Acute diarrhea usually lasts for only a few days and often resolves on its own. However, there are instances where diarrhea persists and this may be referred to as chronic diarrhea. Definition of Chronic Diarrhea Diarrhea (loose bowel movements) is considered as chronic when it lasts for more than 2 weeks (1). It is important to understand what the term diarrhea means, whether it is acute or chronic. Diarrhea is defined as having more than three bowel movements in a 24 hour period where the stool is of a liquid or watery consistency. Another definition is the passing of more than 200g (grams) or 200mL (milliliters) within a 24 hour period. Therefore chronic diarrhea is the passage of watery stools in more than three bowel movements within 24 hours that extends for more than two weeks. Depending on the underlying cause, chronic diarrhea can lead to dehydration, malnutrition or nutritional deficiencies and failure to thrive (FTT) in young children. In [...]

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Non-Stop Diarrhea – Causes, Diet and Treatment

Dr. Chris — Mon, 09 Oct 2017 23:21:03 +0000

Non-stop diarrhea may be a cause for concern but most of the time it is short-lived and does not lead to any serious problems if properly managed. The main danger with diarrhea is dehydration. However, dehydration can be prevented. Even when it does arise, dehydration can be effectively treated if attended to early. Nevertheless, non-stop diarrhea should not be ignored whether it is acute or chronic. What is non-stop diarrhea? Non-stop diarrhea is where there is profuse diarrhea and there are repeated bowel movements one after the other. This is in the acute setting and tends to last for a few days to a week at most. Non-stop diarrhea may also refer to prolonged diarrhea that persists for weeks and even months. This is chronic diarrhea and may not be as profuse but persists for long periods of time. Most of the time acute diarrhea is due to infections, toxins or food-related disorders. It can cause severe diarrhea with one loose bowel movement after the other as the disease peaks. Once it resolves, bowel habit usually returns to normal. However, in chronic diarrhea the bowel habit does not return to normal for long periods or there may be periods of [...]

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Recurrent Diarrhea – Causes of Repeated Bouts of Diarrhea

Dr. Chris — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 22:55:20 +0000

Normal bowel movements occur once or twice in day, the stool is passed out with ease and is well formed, firm and brown in color. It is still normal to pass out bowel movements less frequently or more often provided that there is no straining, pain, very hard and dry or very loose and watery stool. Diarrhea is defined as the passage of more than 200g or 200ml of stool usually in three or more movements in a day. It is not uncommon to experience diarrhea for various reasons several times in life and it remains one of the most common intestinal disorders. However, diarrhea is more often acute, lasting for just a few days, and resolves quickly on its own or with medical treatment and further complications rarely arise. Diarrhea is a sign of an underlying gastrointestinal or systemic disturbance and always needs to be investigated thoroughly if it is persistent or recurrent. What is Recurrent Diarrhea? Recurrent diarrhea or repeated diarrhea is any large volume of stools, frequent bowel movements and/or watery loose stools that arise and resolve over and over again. It can be further defined as chronic diarrhea, when it recurs frequently for more than 2 [...]

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