Symptoms of Diverticulitis and Diverticulosis | Acute and Chronic Symptoms
Symptoms of Diverticulitis
- Diverticulitis is hardly seen below the age of 40yrs.
- Diverticulitis is more common in patients with wide-spread diverticulosis.
- Clinical presentation can be ‘acute’ or ‘chronic’.
- Inflammation is the commonest complication of diverticulosis coli.
- The clinical picture of sigmoid diverticulitis very much resembles that of appendicitis and is often called ‘left sided appendicitis’.
- Diverticulosis is mostly asymptomatic condition.
- Usually appearance of symptoms suggests that diverticulosis has progressed to diverticulitis.
- Pain is the most important symptom.
- Pain is usually mild to moderate and is felt deep in the left lower quadrant or supra-pubic region.
- Pain is usually dull, continuous and aching, occasionally it may be intermittent and cramping.
This is simply due to intra-luminal pressure in an isolated segment of colon. - Anorexia and mild nausea are common, but vomiting is rare. Some changes of bowel habit is noted- either diarrhea or constipation.
- Low grade fever and mild leucocytosis are common.
- On examination, tenderness on the left lower quadrant is quite diagnostic.
- A tender mass representing the inflamed feces-filled colon be palpable.
