Diagnosis and treatment of hematochezia: guideline for clinical practice.

Hematochezia as an acute and chronic lower gastrointestinal bleeding could be caused by diverticulosis, angiodysplasia, neoplasm, perianal disorders, Meckel's diverticulum, colitis (infectious and non-infectious) intussusception, and many others. Lower gastrointestinal bleeding mostly occurs in older age. Mortality caused by acute and chronic lower gastrointestinal bleeding is very high. On the other hand, there are difficulties in clinical practice to find the cause and making the diagnosis and therapy for hematochezia. Fortunately, the progress and development in medical technology, especially colonoscopy and arteriography, has assisted in clinical practice.