Symptoms
The majority of people afflicted with Meckel's diverticulum are asymptomatic. If symptoms do occur, they typically appear before the age of two.
The most common presenting symptom is painless rectal bleeding such as melaena-like black offensive stools, followed by intestinal obstruction, volvulus and intussusception. Occasionally, Meckel's diverticulitis may present with all the features of acute appendicitis. Also, severe pain in the epigastric region is experienced by the patient along with bloating in the epigastric and umbilical regions. At times, the symptoms are so painful such that they may cause sleepless nights with acute pain felt in the foregut region, specifically in the epigastric and umbilical regions.
Most of the time, bleeding occurs without warning and stops spontaneously. The symptoms can be extremely painful, often mistaken as just stomach pain resulting from not eating or constipation.
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