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What is Diverticulitis?

Article by Rick

What is Diverticulitis - The Basics
Diverticulitis (or Diverticulosis - if there is no inflammation or infection) is where pressure from the colon causes the formation of small out-pouchings of tissue (or sacs) along the wall of the colon. This occurs as a person gets older.They can occur throughout the colon but are most common at the area of the colon on the left side known as the sigmoid colon (the nearest part of the colon to the rectum).
What is diverticulitis

A low-fiber diet is often thought to cause Diverticulosis.

Low fiber can mean small hard stools which require vigorous contractions to push along.

This is turn can cause the inner lining of the intestines to herniate through the muscle walls into the pouches that we know as diverticula.

What is Diverticulitis - Occurrence
It may surprise you to know that Diverticulosis is actually very common, in fact over fifty percent of Americans over the age of 60 have diverticula sacs along their colon.Of those people with Diverticulosis, less than ten percent will ever develop complications, and most will live without even knowing they have them.

Symptoms
One of the reasons we have included a page on Diverticulosis on an IBS website is because the symptoms can be very similar to IBS.

The general symptoms of Diverticulosis include:

Constipation

Diarrhea

Cramping in the Abdomen

In some cases more severe complications can occur, they will usually be one or all of the following:

Infection

Bleeding

Perforation of the Colon

One major problem that can occur is when a hard piece of stool gets trapped in the opening of the diverticula sac. This can cause the small segment of colon containing the sac, to inflame and possibly die. In these cases surgery is required to remove the segment of colon affected.

Diverticula can also bleed, causing blood to be passed in the stool.

What is Diverticulitis - Diagnosis
Diverticulosis can be confirmed in a number of ways, but one of the most common is with a barium enema. A colonoscopy will often be carried out too in order to exclude the possibility of misdiagnosis, as the symptoms can be vary similar to a number of other diseases and conditions.

Prevention and Treatment
Many people with diverticulosis do not need any specific treatments as they have no, or only minimal symptoms.

People with abdominal cramping may benefit from anti-spasmodic drugs. Some occurrences may need to be treated with antibiotics.

In many cases, flare-ups can be controlled by using a diet sheet for Diverticulitis.

In cases where medical treatment does not work, surgical removal of the affected segment bowel would be considered.

It is generally recommended that a high fiber diet will aid in the prevention of Diverticulosis, and prevent the aggravation and development of any already existing diverticula openings.

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