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Which essential questions will you ask a pediatric patient or his or her caregiver when the presenting complaint is bloody diarrhea? Will these questions vary depending upon the child’s age? Why or why not? What clinical or historical findings will indicate the need for diagnostic studies and why? Which diagnostic studies will you initially order and why?

Acute diarrhea infections are a usual health concern in the world including people within the United States visiting third world countries. Multiple methodologies on therapies including antibiotic as well as non-antibiotic have been applied to offer treatment to the usual ailments. The knowledge on prevention, diagnostic and treatment and the implication of acute diarrhea has come into view and has assisted in the process of clinical management (Cash & Glass, 2014).

The most crucial question to ask the caregiver is whether the stool appears black and tar-like. The presence of blood in diarrhea means that there is gastrointestinal bleeding. The stool appearing like tar is a result of bleeding the upper part of the digestive tract. It is important to realize that the agents causing diarrhea in children and infants differ depending their age (Burns, C., et al, 2013). The causes of bloody diarrhea for children of the age of one year or less are mostly intestinal infection such as infant colitis. For the children above the age of one year, the common causes of intestinal infection include ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s colitis. Examples of questions are:

--Any change in appetite?

- Did you note weight gain or loss?

-Do you observe any intolerance to certain foods?

-Any nausea and/or vomiting episode observed?

-Did the patient presents change in bowel habits?

-Did the patient presents any blood in the bowel movement?

- Describe color and quantity

-Any abdominal pain?

-Describe location and if it radiates

-Describe pain intensity in a scale 1-10

-Describe frequency, quality

Cases of blood in diarrhea should be treated immediately though most of the cases observed are not serious. However, patients who notice blood in their stool should seek medical attention. In this case, tests carried out depend on the age of the patients. The factors that the doctor should consider are the individual situation and symptoms exhibited. The most commonly applied tests to assess the reason behind the blood stools include a rectal exam, anoscopy, colonoscopy otherwise known as sigmoidoscopy. The initial diagnostic that the doctor may take is the rectal exam. In this exam, the doctor will use the finger to assess the internal parts of the anus and observe the external parts as well.