Hemorrhage from the Rectum

Hemorrhage from the rectum may be accidental, primary, or secondary—accidental when it follows the ulceration of internal piles or the erosion of large arterial or venous trunks during the progress of malignant disease, or when it occurs from the rupture of a rectum during defecation—a very rare and curious occurrence reported by M. E. Quénu; primary when it occurs during, and secondary when it occurs after, a surgical operation upon these parts.

Révue de Chirurg.; Practitioner, p. 29, Oct., 1882.

Hemorrhage from the rectum without any structural lesions is quite unusual, but occasionally copious losses of blood are seen in vicarious menstruation, and several instances have been reported.

When ligatures separate after operations upon those of broken-down constitution very copious and dangerous bleeding may occur without any symptoms save a "sensation of something trickling in the bowel," a feeling of weight and fulness in the part, with increasing weakness and syncope of the patient, until he expresses a desire to go to stool, when suddenly a large quantity of blood escapes.