Patient education: GI bleed – Discharge instructions (The Basics)

What are discharge instructions? — Discharge instructions are information about how to take care of yourself after getting medical care for a health problem.

What is a GI bleed? — "GI" stands for "gastrointestinal." The "GI system" (or "GI tract") is the medical term for all of the organs in the body that process food (figure 1). This includes the:

●Esophagus (the tube that connects the mouth to the stomach)

●Stomach

●Small intestine (also known as the small bowel)

●Large intestine (also known as the colon or large bowel)

A GI bleed is when any of these organs start to bleed. Sometimes, you do not know that you are bleeding, because it's happening slowly inside of your body. Other times, you can have symptoms like vomiting blood or having blood in your bowel movements.

How do I care for myself at home? — Ask the doctor or nurse what you should do when you go home. Make sure that you understand exactly what you need to do to care for yourself. Ask questions if there is anything you do not understand.

Depending on the cause of your bleeding, your doctor might ask you to:

●Take all of your medicines as instructed.

●Avoid taking medicines called "NSAIDs" too often, unless your doctor tells you that it is OK. These medicines can cause bleeding. Examples of NSAIDs include aspirin, ibuprofen (sample brand names: Advil, Motrin), and naproxen (sample brand names: Aleve, Naprosyn). If you have to take these medicines often, your doctor might give you another medicine to lower your risk of bleeding.

●Try to avoid straining when you have a bowel movement.

●Keep track of how often you have blood in your bowel movements or if you have any black, tarry stools. This could be due to GI bleeding.

●Avoid alcohol. This includes beer, wine, and mixed drinks.

These steps might help if you have constipation or if you strain when you have a bowel movement:

●Eat foods with lots of fiber. These include whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.

●Drink plenty of water and other fluids each day.

●Be active. Try to walk, garden, or do something active for 30 minutes or more on most days of the week.

●Sit in a warm bath twice a day for about 15 minutes each time.

What follow-up care do I need? — Your doctor or nurse will tell you if you need to make a follow-up appointment. If so, make sure that you know when and where to go.

When should I call the doctor? — Call for emergency help right away (in the US and Canada, call 9-1-1) if:

●You have heavy bleeding from your rectum.

●You have severe belly pain.

●You have chest discomfort, or get short of breath or lightheaded, along with blood in your bowel movements.

Call your doctor for advice if:

●Your bleeding increases a lot.

●You vomit blood or something that looks like coffee grounds.

●Your bowel movements look black or dark red, or have blood in them.

●You have changes in how often or how hard or soft your bowel movements are.

●You become very pale, or your heart is racing all of the time.

●You feel very weak or get lightheaded when you stand up.

●You have belly pain or soreness.

●You lose weight without trying to.

More on this topic

Patient education: GI bleed (The Basics)
Patient education: Bloody stools in adults (The Basics)
Patient education: Bloody stools in children (The Basics)
Patient education: Hemorrhoids (The Basics)
Patient education: Constipation in adults (The Basics)
Patient education: Constipation in children (The Basics)

Patient education: Blood in the stool (rectal bleeding) in adults (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Blood in bowel movements (rectal bleeding) in babies and children (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Anal fissure (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Hemorrhoids (Beyond the Basics)