Pediatric gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding

What is pediatric gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding?

Pediatric GI bleeding includes any bleeding that happens in your child’s gastrointestinal (GI) tract.

A child with GI bleeding may have vomiting with blood or they may have bleeding during or between bowel movements.

GI bleeding is a symptom of a medical problem, such as an ulcer or colon polyps.

What are the signs and symptoms of pediatric gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding?

The symptoms of GI bleeding depend on if the bleeding is happening in the upper or lower portion of the gastrointestinal tract.

Symptoms may include:

• Abdominal cramps

• Anemia (low iron in the blood)

• Black, tar-like stool

• Blood in stool

• Diarrhea

• Dizziness

• Fatigue (extreme tiredness)

• Pale skin

• Shortness of breath

• Vomiting blood

What are the causes of pediatric gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding?

The most common causes of GI bleeding in children include:

• Anal fissures

• Esophagitis (inflammation of the esophagus)

• Diarrhea

• Diverticulitis

• Esophageal varices (enlarged veins in the esophagus that tear)

• Gastritis (stomach inflammation)

• Immature digestive system (in infants)

• Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)

• Maternal blood ingestion (at birth or during breastfeeding)

• Milk protein allergy

• Peptic ulcer disease

• Polyps in the colon

• Vascular lesions

• Vitamin K deficiency at birth