What does hematemesis refer to?

• A. Bloody vomiting
• B. Vomiting blood-stained mucus
• C. Coughing blood
• D. Nosebleed

Answer: (A)

Hemateme­sis is vomiting blood. It signals bleeding somewhere in the upper gastrointestinal tract, such as the esophagus, stomach, or proximal duodenum, and the blood can be bright red or have a coffee-ground appearance after gastric acid has acted on it. This is different from coughing up blood, which comes from the lungs, or a nosebleed, which is nasal. If vomit is blood-stained, that still centers on the fact that the expelled material contains blood, defining hematemesis.