What is Diverticulitis?
What is Diverticulitis?

Diverticulitis occurs when one or more diverticula in your digestive tract become inflamed or infected. Diverticula are small, bulging pouches that can form anywhere in your digestive system, including your esophagus, stomach and small intestine. However, they are most commonly found in the large intestine.

Diverticula are common, especially after age 40. When you have diverticula, the condition is known as diverticulosis. You may never even know you have these pouches because they seldom cause any problems, such as diverticulitis.

Symptoms

1) Pain that is often sudden, severe, and located in the lower left side of the abdomen.
2) Less commonly, abdominal pain may be mild at first, and become worse over several days, possibly fluctuating in intensity
3) Change in bowel habits
4) Abdominal tenderness
5) Fever
6) Nausea and vomiting
7) Constipation
8) Diarrhea

Less common signs and symptoms of diverticulitis may include:

1) Bloating
3) Bleeding from your rectum


Causes

Diverticula usually develop when naturally weak places in your colon give way under pressure. This causes marble-sized pouches to protrude through the colon wall.

Exactly how diverticula become inflamed or infected is not clear. One theory is that the increased pressure in the colon can lead to breakdown of the wall of the diverticula leading to infection. Another is that the narrow openings of diverticula may trap fecal matter, which can lead to infection. Or, an obstruction in the narrow opening of a diverticulum may reduce blood supply to the area, which leads to inflammation.

In the past, doctors thought that nuts, seeds, popcorn and corn played a role in causing diverticulitis by getting trapped in the diverticula. However, recent research has found that these foods weren't associated with an increased risk of diverticulitis.

Western Medicine Treatment

In general, treatment depends on the severity of your signs and symptoms and whether this is your first attack of diverticulitis. If your symptoms are mild, a liquid or low-fiber diet and antibiotics may be all you need. But if you're at risk of complications or have recurrent attacks of diverticulitis, you may need more advanced care.

1) Rest
2) Consume a liquid diet for a few days
3) Antibiotics
4) Acetaminophen
5) Hospitalization
6) Surgery
7) Primary bowel resection
8) Bowel resection with colostomy
9) Abscess drainage

Information gathered from the Mayo Clinic