Such an unpleasant symptom as vomiting occurs with various diseases, for example, with intestinal infection, flu, gastritis, poisoning, concussion and others. And if parents notice blood in the vomit, it is very frightening. Why can blood get into the stomach contents secreted during vomiting, what should parents do and how to quickly help a child?
What does it look like?
The impurity of blood in the vomit can be indicated not only by the red color, but also by other changes.
Blood trapped in the contents of the stomach may look like:
- Pink tinge of vomit or rare blood streaks. Such vomiting is characteristic of slight bleeding from the gastric mucosa.
- Scarlet blood in abundance. It is an extremely dangerous situation for blood from large vessels to enter the vomit, for example, in case of injury.
- Brown or black tinge of vomit. This color appears due to the oxidation of iron in the blood under the influence of gastric juice. This variant of blood impurity is typical for rather dangerous internal bleeding.
Possible reasons
The appearance of blood in the contents of the child's stomach may be due to:
- Damage to the mucous membrane of the esophagus or stomach with inflammation, severe cough, hiccups, vomiting.
- Peptic ulcer of the digestive tract.
- Injury to the esophagus or throat.
- Nosebleeds.
- Liver disease.
- Tumors of the stomach or esophagus.
In a nursing baby, blood can enter the stomach when the mother's nipples are cracked, when the baby swallows some blood with milk.
Should I call a doctor?
Seeing signs of blood in the vomit, the only correct solution would be to immediately call a doctor. Even if nosebleeds are causing the blood to enter the stomach, the child should be seen by a doctor.
First aid
- Since vomiting is always a very frightening condition for the child and parents, you need to calm down yourself and calm the baby down.
- After vomiting, you need to wash the child, and then let him rinse his mouth with clean water.
- Bed rest is recommended, but it is better for the child to lie so that his head is slightly raised and turned to the side.
- To prevent dehydration, immediately after vomiting, the child should be given to drink in small portions (so as not to provoke more bouts of vomiting) saline solutions, rosehip decoction, non-carbonated mineral water.
- Medicines, including antiemetics or antibiotics, should not be given to a child until a doctor has examined the child and the cause of the disease is determined.
Tips
It is possible to make sure that the child's vomiting was really with blood, it is possible only through tests, because parents can confuse its appearance with food debris. So it is advisable to save part of the vomit and give it to the doctor who will come to the call.
Food should not be given to the child for several hours after vomiting. Only breastfeeding and formula feeding do not stop, but any complementary foods are canceled. 5-6 hours after an attack of vomiting, if the child has an appetite, he can be offered warm liquid dishes, for example, rice porridge, jelly, slimy soup, vegetable puree. Read more in our article about what a child can eat when vomiting.
