The condition is very common in the United States and has many variations and options, depending on the individual situation. Extract from the medical team McCain is not to talk about the circumstances that led their doctors to recommend surgery as it was performed or whether it was an emergency.
Treatment can be simple and uncomplicated, requiring 10 to 14 days of antibiotics, or it may require extremely complicated surgery with extensive rehabilitation.
Below are answers to some common questions about diverticulitis:
What is diverticulitis?
The colon needs to be smooth. Diverticulitis is an inflammatory condition attacking the bag as the bag sticking out of the wall of the colon, called diverticuli. Some believe that feces and bacteria can get stuck in these outpouchings, causing an inflammatory reaction from the body to fight with him. Others believe that the inflammation and distress caused by the slow erosion of the colon wall due to high pressure in diverticuli.
What caused it?
There is no one “cause” of diverticular disease, and diet plays a large role. Low fiber, high fat, diet red meat is more common in the West is often the culprit. Among the Western population, approximately 50 percent of people aged 60 and 70 percent at age 80 the development of diverticular disease.
In less developed countries, diverticular disease is rare — the theory is that their diet, eat more fiber, which works as a preventive mechanism. Studies have shown that when immigrants settle in the West and adopt Western diets, they develop diverticular disease at the same rate as others in the West. The rise in the incidence of diverticulitis in countries where there is the growing popularity of Western food.
Smoking, obesity, lack of exercise and certain medications are also risk factors for developing diverticular disease. Fortunately, only 20% of patients with diverticular disease will develop symptoms that need treatment.
Symptoms of diverticulitis
Classic diverticulitis the patient with acute, sudden abdominal pain, often in the left lower quadrant of the abdomen, nausea and/or vomiting. Fever may or may not be present. Patients may or may not have changes in bowel movements like constipation or diarrhea.
One of the problems with diverticulitis is that it often does not seem to be what it is. A well-known option is called diverticulitis of the cecum, which is more common in young patients and in developing countries, has all the symptoms of appendicitis. The pain starts and is most severe on the right lower quadrant associated with nausea and/or vomiting. Inflammation can irritate the membrane that surrounds the intestine, which leads to pain that spreads throughout the abdominal cavity. If the patient developed perforation or abscess on the bowel, the patient may have fever, chills, weakness, headaches, dizziness, etc.
Diagnosis of diverticulitis
For young, relatively healthy, the doctor often makes the diagnosis a medical history and conducting a physical exam. They can start with antibiotics to combat bacterial infection and see if there is improvement. In addition, the diagnosis can be done with the help of images, most commonly a CT scan. Blood tests can suggest the diverticulitis but are not decisive in the diagnosis.
How serious is diverticulitis?
Diverticulitis can have serious complications, particularly peritonitis, or inflammation of the organs that can progress to severe sepsis or bacterial contamination in other parts of the body. Fortunately, this is rare.
The majority of patients have symptoms severe enough that they go to the doctor and the diagnosis often enough that this is usually done on the first or subsequent visit. Diverticulitis has a wide range and there is a formulation of the classification systems that healthcare workers can use to determine the level of severity.
Hospitalization is not always needed. For the first time, uncomplicated case of diverticulitis usually does not require hospitalization and can be treated as outpatients antibiotics, along with the subsequent close supervision of a physician. It depends on the age, other medical conditions, access to follow, if there are complications and evaluation of treatment by the doctor of the patient will improve on an outpatient basis.
Not all cases of diverticulitis need surgery, either. Depending on age, risk factors, severity of symptoms, presence of complications and overall clinical judgment of the physician, the patient may be admitted to the hospital for antibiotics or possible surgery. For those who have had multiple courses diverticulitis or a particularly challenging course, doctors can discuss the possibility of elective surgery as an outpatient after weighing risks and benefits.
What are the complications of diverticulitis?
The most serious complication is a large perforation of the colon wall. This means that the inflammatory reaction is so severe or persistent that the splits of the colon, forming a hole and stains, bacteria and fecal matter into the abdominal cavity. Patients with a large perforation, as a rule, seriously ill, requiring emergency surgery and often need intensive care. A large perforation is very rare.
To a much lesser extent, there may be a micro-perforation, which may wall in an abscess. Depending on the size and severity, doctors may recommend surgical intervention or procedure radiology to drain the abscess and treat the walls of the colon. They can choose to treat with antibiotics, if the hole is very small.
For patients who have multiple attacks of diverticulitis, chronic diverticulitis, or diverticulitis that went untreated for a long time, they can develop strictures in the colon, the physical obstruction can cause uncontrolled vomiting and inability to hold the gas. These patients usually need a surgical procedure and possible bowel resection.
Diverticulitis can return?
Unfortunately, Yes. This varies from person to person, but the probability is high. Repeat episodes of diverticulitis are more likely to be admitted to the hospital and will likely need surgery, however, every patient is different and each case should be evaluated by a medical professional the benefits and risks weighed, to determine the appropriate course of treatment.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
