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What Are Colon Blockage Symptoms?

There are ways to tell if your colon gets blocked up.

  1. Find the Location

    • Although the symptoms are very similar, there are some differences depending on if the blockage is in your small or large intestine. In some cases, the differences are hardly noticeable, while in other cases, it's very distinguishable.

    Abdominal Pain

    • No matter if the blockage is in your small or large intestine, you will have some abdominal pain. The difference is how the pain comes and goes. For the small intestine, you can normally feel cramping pains that come and go, usually at or around your belly button. For the large intestine, the cramping will be below the belly button area. In either case, if the pain does not come in waves but tends to stay crampy and painful in a constant state, go to your doctor or the emergency room immediately. It could be a sign your intestine is being strangulated or has been twisted and your colon is completely blocked, which requires immediate attention.

    Vomiting

    • If the bowel blockage is in your small intestine, you will more than likely suffer from vomiting, which will have a greenish color. You do not usually have any forms of vomiting with blockages from your lower intestine unless the blockage has been going on for some time. If vomiting occurs, it will more likely be a brownish color.

    Bloating

    • You would not normally have any kind of bloating if the obstruction is in your small intestine, but if the obstruction is in the lower intestine, you will more than likely have bloating around your belly button area and possibly near your pelvis. You might also be able to hear some gurgling sounds, which diminish when the blockage's movement stops or slows down.

    Diarrhea or Constipation

    • If the blockage is in your small intestine, then you will more than likely have constipation only, with some pockets of gas that will pass from time to time. The difference of where the blockage is in your lower intestine is you might have symptoms of diarrhea and/or constipation. You can have what might seem like severe signs of diarrhea leading to complete constipation. If so, you should seek immediate medical attention. If it is a colon blockage, you might be able to catch it in time before any tearing occurs in your intestine, which could lead to poisoning of your blood and other vital organs.

    Possibly Cancer

    • Often the signs the blockage might be cancerous include blood in your stool, weight loss, losing of appetite and overall lethargy. These are symptoms of a colon blockage, but in a severe form, which must be treated immediately. If you start to contact these symptoms, seek immediate medical assistance.

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