A review of the causes of upper gastrointestinal tract bleeding in children.

Bleeding may occur anywhere along the gastrointestinal tract, which covers a large surface area and is highly vascularized. While gastrointestinal bleeding is an alarming symptom for patients of any age, it can cause panic for children and their care givers. Early diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal bleeding may be essential. The differential diagnosis of bleeding from the upper gastrointestinal tract in infants and children includes numerous possibilities ranging from benign disorders which require little or no treatment at all, to serious diseases which require immediate intervention. This article reviews a variety of disorders which may cause upper gastrointestinal bleeding in infants and children. This is part one, of a two part series, on gastrointestinal bleeding in children. Part two will discuss bleeding from the lower gastrointestinal tract.