cause of anorexia due to intestinal obstruction?

LadyinScrubs, ASN, RN · Aug 9, 2011

i'm reading in my hesi book that signs of intestinal obstruction include anorexia. how does intestinal obstruction cause anorexia? i cannot animate this in my head. please help me understand this.

let's look at it this way. for some reason there is a blockage--in the small or large intestine. it could be caused by adhesions from a prior surgery, tumors in the tract or from nearby organs, hernias, and inflammatory changes (e.g. crohn's disease). so you have a blockage and nothing is going through.

let's look at another way; let's compare an intestinal obstruction with plumbing obstructions--something that every one of us has experienced. what would happen if you had a blockage in your mainline sewer--the line your toilet connects to? if the blockage in the mainline was not complete, you may have slowed emptying of the toilet (in the intestine, you may have brown seepage). should the blockage become complete, nothing will pass and eventually the toilet will start to over flow. this is what happens with an intestinal blockage. if you eat and nothing is going through, sooner or later your will have n/v along with pressure and pain in the blockage area. if you have pain and/or n/v, do you think you are going to be interested in eating? probably not, and you will experiece anorexia. hope this helps.

jrt71 · Aug 10, 2011

I have severe bowel adhesions due to endometriosis. The week I have my period (and 3 days before), I can not consume anything but liquids because of intense pain. Solid food is not an option during that particular time every month.

xtxrn, ASN, RN · Aug 10, 2011

The pipes are clogged...no more wants to go in

LadyinScrubs, ASN, RN · Aug 10, 2011

the pipes are clogged...no more wants to go in

the question is: what is the potential pt going to do about the blockage: do nothing and hope the problem goes away; force the blockage open; or seek professional help?

hint, hint: a true blockage is an emergent problem.

Nurse2Bforever · Aug 12, 2011

That made complete sense. Thank you so much.

Nurse2Bforever · Aug 12, 2011

Let's look at it this way. For some reason there is a blockage--in the small or large intestine. It could be caused by adhesions from a prior surgery, tumors in the tract or from nearby organs, hernias, and inflammatory changes (e.g. Crohn's disease). So you have a blockage and nothing is going through.
Let's look at another way; let's compare an intestinal obstruction with plumbing obstructions--something that every one of us has experienced. What would happen if you had a blockage in your mainline sewer--the line your toilet connects to? If the blockage in the mainline was not complete, you may have slowed emptying of the toilet (in the intestine, you may have brown seepage). Should the blockage become complete, nothing will pass and eventually the toilet will start to over flow. This is what happens with an intestinal blockage. If you eat and nothing is going through, sooner or later your will have N/V along with pressure and pain in the blockage area. If you have pain and/or N/V, do you think you are going to be interested in eating? Probably not, and you will experiece anorexia. Hope this helps.

Now I got it. Thank you for the detailed explanation.