Diarrhea can be expressed as an increase in stool hardness. It is usually accompanied by more frequent defecation. In more technical terms, diarrhea is defined as more than 300 grams of stool, which normally does not exceed 300 grams per day and contains approximately 150 ml of water, and contains more than 250 ml of water.
When diarrhea starts suddenly, it is called acute diarrhea. Diarrhea that develops in addition to some other diseases and lasts for weeks or months is chronic diarrhea. Diarrhea is often associated with malabsorption of water and electrolytes. Intestinal movements are disrupted, water and electrolyte transfer to the intestinal cavity increases with increased permeability of the intestinal wall epithelium, reabsorption of electrolytes and minerals from the intestine is impaired, and as a result, an unabsorbed content accumulates in the intestinal cavity. The intestines move more to excrete this content.
Sometimes abnormal intestinal contents may be in the form of bloody mucus, which is small and frequently removed. Patients may perceive this extracted content as diarrhea. Evaluation with stool examination may be necessary.
acute diarrhea
Urinary diarrhea usually begins suddenly and resolves within a few days. Abdominal cramps are common in acute diarrhea. The urge to defecate is very frequent. It is also possible to go to the sink as if to defecate and not be able to defecate. Nausea and vomiting may also occur. Stool is usually watery. There may be blood in the stool or it may be in the form of bloodless mucus. Sometimes there may also be fever and muscle aches. These symptoms may vary depending on the cause of the disease. Abdominal tenderness and stiffness may also occur. Although acute diarrhea symptoms are usually short-lived, immediate evaluation is required in cases lasting longer than 24 hours.
The most common causes of acute diarrhea are:
- Acute diarrhea caused by infections
- Bacterial infections
- Salmonella
- Shigella
- Campylobacter fetus
- Vibrio cholerae
- Enteropahogenic Eschercia coli
- Clostridium
- Yersinia enterocolitica
- Vibrio parahemolyticus
- Viral infections
- Enteroviruses
- Hepatitis virus
- Parvovirus-like agents
- Orbivirus
- Norovirus
- Cytomegalovirus
- Fungal infections
- Candida
- Actinomyces
- Histoplasma
- Parasitic infections
- Giardia lamblia (Giardiasis)
- Entameoba histolytica (Amibiasis)
- Ascaris lumbricoides
- Ancylostoma duodenale
- Necator americanus
- Trichuris trichura
- Strongyloides stercorales
- Toxic causes
- Bacterial toxins
- Staphylococci
- Clostridiumperfiringes
- Eschercia coli
- Clostridium botulinium
- Bacillus cereus
- Clostridium difficile
- Pseudomonas
- Chemical toxins
- Arsenic
- Bullet
- Mercury
- Mushrooms
- Diet-induced acute diarrhea
- Irritating foods
- Food allergies
- Food intolerance
- Non-absorbable sugars
- Other causes of acute diarrhea
- Alcohol
- Medicines
- Laxatives
- Antacids
- Heart medications
- Colchicine
- Antimicrobial drugs
- Appendicitis
- Diverticulitis
- Bleeding of the gastrointestinal organs
- Henoch-Schonlein purpura
- Stevens-Johnson syndrome
- Pseudomembranous enterocolitis
- Fecal plug
- Ischemic colitis
- Tissue rejection after bone marrow transplantation
- Bacterial toxins
- Bacterial infections