The higher the country is in terms of technical and social development, the higher the incidence of various pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract in it. Paradoxically, but a fact. Nowadays, gastritis, inflammation of the intestine become a kind of norm. However, the fact that everyone is sick does not mean the norm.
One of the most common diseases, almost on a par with gastritis, is inflammation of the sigmoid colon. In medical practice, damage to the mucous membrane of the sigmoid colon is called sigmoiditis.
Surely many at least once in their life experienced pain in the left iliac region, symptoms of digestive upset, discomfort. But few people paid attention to this. Meanwhile, this is sigmoiditis.
Such a seemingly harmless pathology is not at all as simple as it seems. Sigmoiditis is fraught with the development of many serious complications, increases the risk of oncology at a young age, often becomes chronic.
It is impossible to let such a pathology drift. To navigate the situation it is important to know the enemy in person.
Sigmoid colon inflammation: causes
According to statistics, sigmoiditis is among the leaders among the reasons for visiting a gastroenterologist. However, the causes of inflammation of the sigmoid colon are heterogeneous and numerous.
Among the most common:
• Alimentary causes. In other words, eating disorders. Sigmoiditis of alimentary origin is a real scourge of office workers and generally busy people. According to medical statistics, up to 85% of all visits to a specialist about inflammation of the sigmoid colon occur in this form of the disease. Sigmoiditis develops in people who abuse fried, fatty, salty, smoked foods. However, the predominance of animal fats in the diet is not so noticeable if a person consumes enough fiber. Therefore, we are also talking about a deficiency of coarse dietary fiber in the diet.
• Infectious causes. Sigmoiditis of an infectious origin develops after eating infected food. The causative agents of the disease are shigella and salmonella.
• Autoimmune pathologies. Nonspecific ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease are not so common, but, nevertheless, cause the most severe lesions of the chronic sigmoid colon. The development of these diseases is based on the immune response, when the immunity takes the cells of the intestinal mucosa for infectious agents and seeks to destroy them.
• Dysbacteriosis often causes chronic inflammation of the sigmoid colon. With the development of dysbiosis, conditionally pathogenic microflora prevails over the beneficial. Various peptic phenomena and inflammation occur.
• Ischemia. Lack of blood supply to the walls of the organ can cause inflammation of the sigmoid colon. More often this problem is observed in obese sedentary and older people with chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
• Radiation damage. For obvious reasons, it is not common. At risk are nuclear power plant employees, submarine employees, and others.
It is impossible to figure out such a variety of reasons on your own.
Sigmoid colon inflammation: symptoms
Sigmoid colon inflammation is characterized by a host of symptoms. The specific manifestations depend on two factors: the source of the disease, the nature of the process. Acute sigmoiditis manifests itself brighter, chronic leaks with a blurred clinical picture.
The whole complex of symptoms should be considered inseparably from the form of the disease.
Sigmoiditis of an infectious origin
Symptoms are manifested 3-4 days after the penetration of the pathogen. The first symptoms appear at 4 hours - 2 days. At this point, the disease can be confused with gastroenteritis, since the manifestations are characteristic:
• Nausea.
• Vomiting.
• Pain in the epigastric region.
Starting from the third day, new symptoms of sigmoid colon inflammation are added to the existing ones:
• Painful diarrhea. The frequency of bowel movements reaches 15-20 times or more. Sometimes patients go to the toilet several times per hour.
• False urge to defecate. Tenesmus is characteristic precisely for the defeat of the large intestine. As a result of visiting the toilet, after each false urge, nothing or a small amount of yellowish mucus is released.
• Add tape mucus or clear blood to the stool.
• Pain in the left iliac region (two fingers above and to the left of the pubic region).
• Rise in temperature.
For a similar symptomatic complex, sigmoiditis of an infectious origin is quite simple to detect even on its own. But without medical help can not do. Without proper treatment, infectious sigmoiditis can last for years, with frequent relapses. Moreover, each relapse is accompanied by a typical clinical picture: in all its glory, symptoms return.
Sigmoiditis on the background of dysbiosis
Symptoms are exactly the opposite. As with the infectious form, pains are observed in the left iliac region, discomfort, a feeling of fullness. However, diarrhea is absent.
Most often, such inflammation of the sigmoid colon is accompanied by constipation. Or alternating constipation and diarrhea. Continuous diarrhea indicates concomitant helminth infections.
The clinic is blurry, in some cases, the manifestations are so scarce that the patient does not pay attention to them. Meanwhile, it is very dangerous. Sigmoiditis over time can lead to atrophy of the intestinal mucosa.
If the pathological process also captures the rectum, there are manifestations of spastic constipation (sheep feces, etc.).
Autoimmune Sigmoiditis
The leading symptoms of these forms of sigmoid inflammation are:
• Headache.
• weakness.
• Lack of appetite.
• Abdominal pain before defecation, which subsides after going to the toilet.
• Raising the temperature to a level of 37.3-38 degrees.
• Thirst.
The specific symptoms depend on the severity of the lesion.
Alimentary sigmoiditis
Symptoms are mild. As a rule, the manifestations are similar to the manifestations of inflammation of the intestine against the background of dysbiosis.
Sigmoid Inflammation: Diagnosis
Diagnostic measures for inflammation of the sigmoid colon are diverse, since there are many causes of the disease. The first thing a patient should do is consult a gastroenterologist. He specializes in gastrointestinal problems.
Diagnosis of inflammation of the sigmoid colon is as follows:
• Conducting an initial inspection. Includes medical history (oral questioning) and physical examination (palpation). A competent doctor already at this stage may suspect sigmoiditis.
• Laboratory examination of feces. A coprogram is necessary because it allows you to evaluate the work of the intestines, to identify an infectious lesion, dysbiosis.
• Biochemical blood test. Allows you to evaluate the degree of absorption of certain substances from the intestine into the blood.
• Sigmoidoscopy. An informative and affordable way to visually assess the mucous membrane of the sigmoid colon.
• Colonoscopy. It is used less often, however, it allows you to evaluate the entire large intestine.
As a rule, with inflammation of the sigmoid colon, laboratory tests are sufficient for diagnosis. Nevertheless, sometimes invasive manipulations, such as sigmoidoscopy, can not be done. This is a rather unpleasant, but necessary element of the examination.
Sigmoid colon inflammation: treatment
In the treatment of such an obsessive pathology, two methods are used: taking medications and a diet.
The nutrition of the patient should be fractional and carefully calibrated. Everything fatty, salty, spicy, smoked is excluded from the diet. Vegetables, fruits, low-fat meats, bread, low-fat sour-milk products, this is what should prevail in the patient's diet.
You need to eat food in small portions, 5-6 times a day. There is no need to load the already irritated intestines.
Drugs for the treatment of inflammation of the sigmoid colon are prescribed on the basis of a specific case:
• Antispasmodics. They are used to relieve pain and spasm of the smooth muscles of the intestine.
• Analgesics. They are painkillers. Often they are prescribed in combination with antispasmodics.
• Antibacterial drugs. Used with the infectious nature of sigmoiditis.
• Immunosuppressants. Their task is to weaken the immune response in patients with autoimmune pathologies.
• Antihistamines. In rare cases, sigmoiditis can be triggered by an allergy. Antihistamines smooth out an allergic reaction.
• Anti-inflammatory drugs.
• Drugs against worms.
• Laxatives. Appointed in the most severe cases. Typically, stool normalization is achieved by diet.
• Probiotics. Called to restore normal microflora.
Together, these drugs are used to treat sigmoid colon inflammation of any origin.
Sigmoiditis is a dangerous but silent disease. In most cases, it proceeds with minimal symptoms.
