Melena causes

Melena Microchapters
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

The most common cause of melena is peptic ulcer disease. Any other cause of bleeding from the upper gastro-intestinal tract, or even the ascending colon, can also cause melena. Melena may also be a sign of drug overdose if a patient is taking anti-coagulants, such as warfarin. A less serious, self-limiting case of melena can occur in newborns two to three days after delivery, due to swallowed maternal blood.

Causes

Life Threatening Causes

Life-threatening causes include conditions which may result in death or permanent disability within 24 hours if left untreated.

Common Causes

• Peptic ulcer

Causes by Organ System

Cardiovascular	No underlying causes
Chemical/Poisoning	No underlying causes
Dental	No underlying causes
Dermatologic	No underlying causes
Drug Side Effect	No underlying causes
Ear Nose Throat	No underlying causes
Endocrine	No underlying causes
Environmental	No underlying causes
Gastroenterologic	No underlying causes
Genetic	No underlying causes
Hematologic	No underlying causes
Iatrogenic	No underlying causes
Infectious Disease	No underlying causes
Musculoskeletal/Orthopedic	No underlying causes
Neurologic	No underlying causes
Nutritional/Metabolic	No underlying causes
Obstetric/Gynecologic	No underlying causes
Oncologic	No underlying causes
Ophthalmologic	No underlying causes
Overdose/Toxicity	No underlying causes
Psychiatric	No underlying causes
Pulmonary	No underlying causes
Renal/Electrolyte	No underlying causes
Rheumatology/Immunology/Allergy	No underlying causes
Sexual	No underlying causes
Trauma	No underlying causes
Urologic	No underlying causes
Miscellaneous	No underlying causes

Causes in Alphabetical Order

The upper part of the GI tract will usually cause black stools due to:

• Abnormal blood vessels (vascular malformation)
• A tear in the esophagus from violent vomiting (Mallory-Weiss tear)
• Bleeding stomach or duodenal ulcer
• Inflammation of the stomach lining (gastritis)
• Lack of proper blood flow to the intestines (bowel ischemia)
• Trauma or foreign body
• Widened, overgrown veins (called varices) in the esophagus and stomach