Melaena (Noun)
Meaning
Abnormally dark tarry feces containing blood (usually from gastrointestinal bleeding).
Classification
Nouns denoting substances.
Examples
- The patient's melaena was caused by a peptic ulcer that had been bleeding for several days.
- After visiting the emergency room with complaints of abdominal pain, the doctor asked the patient to provide a stool sample to check for melaena.
- The presence of melaena in the patient's stool led the doctor to suspect a gastrointestinal bleed.
- The nurse was instructed to monitor the patient's stool for signs of melaena after the colonoscopy procedure.
- The doctor explained to the patient that the black tarry melaena in her stool was a result of upper GI bleeding.