Does gastrointestinal bleeding occur in IBD?
Bleeding from the intestinal tract, or gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding, may complicate the course of both ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. GI bleeding is often referred to as rectal bleeding when the blood comes out of the rectum, usually with the stools. If the source of bleeding is in the colon, the blood is usually a red color. The longer the blood the remains in the intestine, however, the darker it becomes. Thus, rectal bleeding originating from higher up in the intestinal tract is usually black, except for very rapid bleeding, which can still be red. Patients with ulcerative colitis usually experience some degree of chronic (long duration) rectal bleeding, which can be continuous or intermittent. The bleeding may be mild, as when it is limited to occasional drops on the toilet paper or streaks of blood around the stools. At times, however, the bleeding may be more severe or acute, with the passage of greater amounts of blood or large blood clots. The more severe rectal blee
