Diverticulitis: Tests

of one or more pouches or that bulge out from the wall of a hollow , such as the . Symptoms include and in the .

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About Diverticulitis Tests

Based on symptoms and severity of illness, a person may be evaluated and diagnosed by a primary care physician, an emergency department physician, a surgeon, or a gastroenterologist – a doctor who specializes in digestive diseases.

The health care provider will ask about the person’s health, symptoms, habits, diet, and medications, and will perform a physical exam, which may include a rectal exam. A rectal exam is performed in the health care provider’s office; anesthesia is not needed. To perform the exam, the health care provider asks the person to bend over a table or lie on one side while holding the close to the . The health care provider slides a gloved, lubricated finger into the . The exam is used to check for pain, , or a blockage in the .

The health care provider may schedule one or more of the following tests:

. A involves drawing a person’s at a health care provider’s office, a commercial facility, or a hospital and sending the sample to a lab for analysis. The can show the presence of or —a condition in which are fewer or smaller than normal, which prevents the body’s from getting enough …