Attacks come periodically. Between them the child often calms and may seem to recover. Subsequent and still more severe attacks tend to bring straining to expel fecal matter, which if expelled will contain blood and mucus and thus resemble red jelly. Symptoms your physician may observe A physician might first note that the abdomen is swollen and hurts when touched even lightly. The physician also might feel the presence of a firm, rounded mass under the stomach wall on the upper right side.
Conclusive diagnosis is made with a barium enema.
In this an enema containing the harmless chemical barium sulfate is given rectally, and an X ray of the intestinal tract is taken. The X ray clearly displays the intussusception. In addition to providing a definitive diagnosis, a barium enema itself succeeds in clearing up the intussusception of the intestine in some three out of every four cases that are free of complications. It is thought that the fluid pressure of the enema reverses the telescoped intestinal section causing the blockage. Instances in which a barium enema fails to correct the condition usually require surgery.