As many as 11% of Americans have agastrointestinal disease.
Some can disrupt the normal absorption of nutrients in food and cause significant distress and disability.
Others may require aggressive treatments or surgery to avoid serious illness or death.
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These symptoms occur despite there being no evidence of a structural abnormality or disease.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)is a chronic condition affecting the large intestine.
IBS causes abdominal pain, gas, bloating, diarrhea, and/or constipation.
The cause of this functional disorder is unknown A diagnosis is made based onsymptomsalone.
Functional Dyspepsia
Functionaldyspepsiais characterized by chronic symptoms ofindigestionwithout an underlying cause.
Functional dyspepsia often resemblessymptoms of a peptic ulcerbut without any evidence of tissue damage or sores.
CVS can affect people of any age but predominately affects children.
Studies suggest that as few as four of every 100,000 school-aged children are affected.
Many children with CVS outgrow the condition, while others don’t.
GERD
Acid reflux is the backflow of stomach acid into the esophagus and throat.
When the condition becomes chronic, it is referred to asgastroesophageal reflux disease(GERD).
This allows stomach acid to backflow (reflux) into the esophagus.
Hemorrhoids
Hemorrhoidsare swollen or inflamed blood vessels in or around the anus.
They develop when there is increased pressure on these veins.
They can occur both internally and externally.
Common symptoms of hemorrhoids include:
Roughly 50% of people over the age of 50 have hemorrhoids.
In some cases, diverticulosis can progress todiverticulitisin which the pouches become inflamed due to an infection.
IBD is thought to affect 1.2 million adults and 58,000 children in the United States.
Genetics are thought to play a central role in both diseases.
Colitis
Colitisis inflammation of the colon.
Perianal Abscesses and Fistulas
Aperianalabscessis a pocket of pus that develops in the skin surrounding the anus.
Fistulas typically require surgical repair.
About 90% of perianal abscesses occur due to blockage or infection of anal glands.
IBD is a common cause.
People with diabetes or immune suppression, likeHIV, also may be at higher risk.
They occur when the mucosa becomes stretched beyond its capacity and tears, often due to hard stool.
Symptoms of anal fissures:
Anal fissures are most common in people with chronic constipation.
Up to 20% of people with hemorrhoids also have anal fissures.
In some cases, anal fissures can last up to eight to 12 weeks before healing.
Colon Cancer
Colon polypsare abnormal clumps of cells that form a mass inside the colon.
While most colon polyps are harmless, some can turn intocolon cancerwithin 10 to 20 years.
Most colon polyps dont cause symptoms.
Roughly 14% of adenomatous polyps will develop into cancer after 10 years.
Colon cancermore appropriately referred to ascolorectal canceris the fourth most common cancer in the United States.
These are commonly diagnosed by a specialist in the GI tract known as agastroenterologist.
In some cases, changing your diet and lifestyle habits may provide ample relief.
Physical activity, specificallylight physical activity, has also been shown to improve GI disease symptoms in some people.
Summary
There are many different GI diseases classified as being either functional or structural.
A Word From Verywell
The challenges of living with a gastrointestinal disorder are constant and sometimes overwhelming.
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