Recurrent Diarrhoea with Blood and Mucus

CLINICAL DIAGNOSTIC MANUAL

Recurrent diarrhoea with blood and mucus is a concerning symptom that may indicate the presence of inflammatory bowel disease, infection, or neoplasia.

This type of diarrhoea can be debilitating and significantly impact the patient’s quality of life. Early identification of the underlying cause is crucial to initiating appropriate treatment and preventing serious complications.

Pathology	Symptoms and Clinical Signs	Suspected Diagnosis	Confirmatory Diagnosis
Crohn’s disease	Abdominal pain, chronic diarrhoea with blood and mucus, fever, weight loss, fatigue	History of chronic and recurrent symptoms, physical examination	Colonoscopy with biopsy, imaging studies (CT/MRI), serology
Ulcerative colitis	Abdominal pain, bloody diarrhoea, tenesmus, fever, weight loss	History of chronic diarrhoea with blood and mucus, physical examination	Colonoscopy with biopsy, imaging studies (CT/MRI), serology
Colonic carcinoma	Changes in bowel habits, blood in stool, weight loss, anaemia, abdominal pain	History of gastrointestinal symptoms, physical examination	Colonoscopy with biopsy, abdominal CT scan, blood tests
Colorectal carcinoma	Rectal bleeding, changes in bowel habits, weight loss, anaemia, abdominal pain	History of gastrointestinal bleeding, physical examination	Colonoscopy with biopsy, abdominal CT scan, imaging studies
Diverticulitis	Left lower quadrant pain, fever, diarrhoea or constipation, blood in stool	History of abdominal pain and gastrointestinal symptoms, physical examination	Abdominal CT scan, colonoscopy