Diverticulosis and Diverticulitis

Diverticular disease consists of diverticulosis and diverticulitis. Diverticulosis is a condition that small pouches form in the wall of the large intestine (colon). They are common, especially after age 40. The incidence of diverticulosis increases with age. Age causes a weakening of the walls of the colon and this weakening permits the formation of pouches. By age 80, most people have diverticulosis. They don't usually cause any symptoms. But rarely they causes bleeding from the sites. The mechanism about how the pouches form in the colon wall is not clear, but it is thought that the high pressure in the colon forms the pouches by working on the weak sites where blood vessels pass through the muscle layer of the bowel wall to supply blood to the inner wall. High fibers can makes stool move easily through the colon to make it bulky. Low fibers make stool difficult to move, which creates high pressure. It is called diverticulitis when diverticulosis is inflamed or infected with feces trapped in the pouches. Diverticulitis causes severe abdominal pain, fever, nausea and a change in bowel habits. Eating a high-fiber diet, getting plenty of fluid, and exercising regularly may help prevent diverticulosis and diverticulitis. In the US, average diet contains only about half the amount of fiber (20-25 grams) to reduce pressure to avoid diverticulosis. Diverticulosis can be treated with the same way. For diverticulitis treatment, you need to rest and take a liquid diet for a few days so that your infection can heal. Once your symptoms improve — usually within three days — you can gradually add high-fiber foods. If it has an infection, your doctor may prescribe antibiotics. You may need surgery only if diverticulitis doesn't get better with other treatment, or if you have problems such as chronic pain, a bowel obstruction, a fistula, or abscess. However, this is not related to colon cancer.