Diverticulitis history and symptoms

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Cafer Zorkun, M.D., Ph.D. [2]

Overview

When taking a medical history, the doctor may ask about bowel habits, pain, other symptoms, diet, and medications. The physical exam usually involves a digital rectal exam. To perform this test, the doctor inserts a gloved, lubricated finger into the rectum to detect tenderness, blockage, or blood. The doctor may check stool for signs of bleeding and test blood for signs of infection.

History and symptoms

Diverticulitis clinical manifestations depends on the severity of the organ inflammation. Patients infected with the disease usually give history of lower quadrant abdominal pain, fever and change in bowel habits either constipation or diarrhea. They also may complain of nausea and vomiting. Less commonly, an individual with diverticulitis may present with right-sided abdominal pain. This may be due to the less prevalent right-sided diverticula or a very redundant sigmoid colon.

Most common symptoms

Diverticulitis common sympotms include the following:

• Abdominal pain especially left lower quadrant
• Abdominal distension
• Fever
• Cramps
• Constipation

Less common symptoms

• In severe cases of diverticulitis, the patients may present with the following:
  • Flatulence
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
• In few cases, the patients may complain of urinary symptoms like dysuria and urgency because the inflammation is nearby the urinary tract.

Diverticulitis

The most common symptom of diverticulitis is abdominal pain. The most common sign is tenderness around the left side of the lower abdomen. If infection is the cause, fever, nausea, vomiting, chills, cramping, and constipation may occur as well. The severity of symptoms depends on the extent of the infection and complications.