
(HealthNewsDigest.com) – ROCHESTER, Minn. – By age 60, an estimated 60 percent of Americans have diverticular disease – the presence of small pouches along the wall of the large intestine (colon).
The December issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter provides an overview of this condition, which generally produces no symptoms. Most people learn about the presence of the pouches, called diverticula, during a colon exam to screen for polyps or colon cancer. Typically, diverticula only become a problem when inflammation or infection develops. When that happens, it’s called diverticulitis.
Symptoms of diverticulitis include pain and tenderness in the lower left side of the abdomen. The pain is often intense and comes on suddenly. Some people experience less severe pain that fluctuates and gradually builds over days. Fever, nausea, constipation and diarrhea, and, occasionally, urinary problems may be present.
Diverticulitis is mild and uncomplicated for about three-fourths of people with the condition. Treatment includes nonprescription pain medication, antibiotics and a liquid diet for a few days, typically administered from home.
Diverticulitis can be more serious and even life-threatening. Complications can include an infected, pus-filled pocket (abscess), a diverticulum rupturing into the abdominal cavity, or bowel obstruction. Intravenous antibiotics and surgery may be needed to remove the affected portion of the colon.
Doctors aren’t sure what causes these colon abnormalities. It’s suspected to be related to a lack of dietary fiber, lack of exercise, obesity and aging. Lifestyle changes, especially adding fiber to the diet, can prevent the progression of diverticular disease and recurrence of diverticulitis. The recommendation is that men and women over age 51 consume 30 and 21 grams of fiber daily, respectively. A high-fiber diet includes plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole-grain products, beans and legumes. There is no evidence that foods such as seeds, nuts or popcorn increase the risk of diverticulitis.
Mayo Clinic Health Letter is an eight-page monthly newsletter of reliable, accurate and practical information on today’s health and medical news. To subscribe, please call 800-333-9037 (toll-free), extension 9771, or visit Mayo Clinic Health Letter Online.
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About Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic is the first and largest integrated, not-for-profit group practice in the world. Doctors from every medical specialty work together to care for patients, joined by common systems and a philosophy of “the needs of the patient come first.” More than 3,700 physicians, scientists and researchers, and 50,100 allied health staff work at Mayo Clinic, which has campuses in Rochester, Minn; Jacksonville, Fla; and Scottsdale/Phoenix, Ariz.; and community-based providers in more than 70 locations in southern Minnesota., western Wisconsin and northeast Iowa. These locations treat more than half a million people each year. To obtain the latest news releases from Mayo Clinic, go to www.mayoclinic.org/news. For information about research and education, visitwww.mayo.edu. MayoClinic.com (www.mayoclinic.com) is available as a resource for your health stories.
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