Blood in vomit during flu-like illness

Forceful retching may irritate or tear tissue near the food pipe, while swallowed blood from a nosebleed can also colour vomit. Bleeding may instead come from the stomach or upper digestive tract, so do not assume the infection explains it.

Fresh bleeding may look bright red or appear as streaks. Blood exposed to stomach acid can become dark brown or black and resemble wet coffee grounds. Food and drinks can mimic these colours, but suspected blood should still be assessed.

Repeated vomiting can damage the lining where the food pipe meets the stomach. Other possibilities include inflammation, an ulcer, or bleeding from another upper digestive source. Oesophageal cancer and stomach cancer can present with vomiting blood, but this symptom alone cannot identify the cause.

Contact an urgent medical service now for advice and assessment. Note whether the material was bright red, streaked, clotted, or coffee-ground-like, and roughly how much you saw. Mention repeated retching, nosebleeds, black stools, abdominal pain, and every medicine you take.

Avoid taking extra aspirin or anti-inflammatory pain medicines unless a clinician has specifically told you to use them. If you feel faint or weak, sit or lie down and have someone stay with you. Do not drive yourself when dizzy or unwell.

Call emergency services if bleeding is more than a few streaks, continues, or returns, or if you have fainting, confusion, severe weakness, rapid breathing, clammy or pale skin, chest pain, severe abdominal pain, or black tar-like stools. These features can accompany significant blood loss.

Urgency comes from the bleeding and your symptoms, not from whether the illness seems common. Keep a sample or photograph only if it can be done without delaying care.

Ask where the bleeding may have started, whether your medicines could worsen it, and whether you need blood tests, imaging, or a camera examination of the upper digestive tract. Also ask which changes should bring you straight back for emergency care.