Rectal bleeding:Bloodpassed rectally. Blood in the stool can be bright red or maroonincolor. Larger amounts of blood that remain in theintestinelong enough can turn the stool black. Blood in the stool also may be invisible to the nakedeye(occult).
The causes of blood in the stoolrangefrom harmless, annoying conditions of thegastrointestinal tractsuch as hemorrhoids to very serious conditions such as cancer. Blood in the stool should be evaluated by a healthcare professional.
See: Anal fissure; Colon cancer; Crohn's disease; Diverticulosis; Peptic ulcer; and Gastric cancer.
