Diagnosis and follow-up of patients with positive hidden blood in fecal feces

Abstract

Introduction: digestive hemorrhage is defined as any blood loss that stems from any site of the alimentary canal, from the mouth to the anus, including digestive hemorrhages occurring in organs draining in the intestinal lumen.
Objective: to diagnose and follow-up patients with positive hidden blood in fecal feces.
Materials and methods: a descriptive epidemiologic study was carried out in the municipality of Unión de Reyes, province of Matanzas, in the period 2014-2015. The universe and sample were formed by 130 patients whose test of hidden blood in fecal feces was positive, taking as variables the socio-demographic characteristics of the patients, their diagnosis and follow-up.
Results: some of the obtained results were the predominance of ages between 50 and 69 years, and also the female sex with higher test positivity like in black and mestizo patients.   The medications having more incidence were the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory ones and aspirin. The test was indicated to 115 patient in the primary health care, being 76 in the screening. 80 patients were no informed of the intentionality when the test was indicated. From the total of the patients, 43 had diseases related with the upper digestive tract, and 44 with the low one.
Conclusions: one form each five patients showed any tumor of vthe digestive tract. The work of the health teams was considered deficient in relation with the patients’ diagnosis and follow-up.