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Stool colour after Endoscopy for duodenal bleeding ulcer

Posted , 2 users are following.

Satyaprakash
Satyaprakash

Hello guys,

On the 23rd of June 2015 my Father vomitted blood in the morning and was rushed to the hospital and in few hours they did the Endoscopy clipping therapy to his duodenum ulcer (0.7cm). And did not let him eat anything for 3 days (23rd - 26th) and then gave him only liquids for for the next 2 days (27th - 28th). Yesterday(29th) he got released from hospital and came back home. From the 28th he his going to stool a bit everytime but the stool is in black colour. Today (30th) morning also he went for stool and still is in black colour. The doctor told that it will take few days for the old blood to come out after the endoscopy clipping was done. Just wanted to know if anyone has been through this and how long will the stool go in black colour.

P.S. He has only been having boiled rice for every meal without anything just boiled rice as suggested by the doctor. If anyone knows what diet can be done please do let me know.

Thanks all of you guys in advance.

Please do reply promptly if you can.

0 likes, 7 replies

7 Replies

  • lily65668
    lily65668 Satyaprakash

    Posted

    Seven days does seem to be a little long to me, but it depends entirely on the extent of his bleed, of course. Also sounds as if the blood he didn't vomit up took some time getting through into the colon if his first stool was five days after the bleed, as you say. That's quite reassuring, as it means he's only had two days of black stools, which is par for the course - and he could have a couple more days. It also suggests that the initial bleed wasn't too heavy. A massive duodenal bleed will show up pretty quickly as black diarrhoea, in addition to vomiting blood. I would, however have expected most of the digested blood to have passed through by now. (I'm a former nurse, btw.)

    I'm wondering whether it looks as if the amount of blood in his stool is decreasing - i.e. whether the colour is starting to become a bit less dark. The consistency is also important. Digested blood stools are normally referred to as looking a bit like tar. Is this slowly improving?

    And how about his general state? Is he pale, sweating, trembling, feeling weak or nauseous? All these could indicate a low blood pressure state due to an on-going haemorrhage. If the stools are increasing in volume or becoming more liquid, that's a real danger signal for which you should call an ambulance immediately.

    In the absence of any of the danger signs above, I still think you should call his doctor, just to make sure he/she knows about this. This is probably nothing to worry about and simply due to a minor bleed a week ago, followed by a period of constipation, but it wouldn't hurt to check.

    To reiterate, call his GP (or his specialist if you're authorised to do this) and if the black stools get more copious or more liquid, or if he's pale and sweating, call an ambulance.

    • Satyaprakash
      Satyaprakash lily65668

      Posted

      Hi lily65668, First of all thanks so much for answering so promptly. about my dads general state, My dad has no sweating, no trembling, not feeling week or nauseous and very active. Before he vomitted blood on the 23rd, he was going for stool in black for 3 days. just wanted to let you know. The stools are not increasing in volume or in liquid. I just asked him about the colour and he told that the that the blackness has reduced by 5 - 10% by looking at it. Before we left the hospital yesterday we asked the doctor he told it would take 1 - 2 days but just worried. And usually how long does it take for the colour to turn normal again?

      Looking forward to hearing from you,

      Thanks so much again

    • lily65668
      lily65668 Satyaprakash

      Posted

      Sounds as if your dad was lucky. If he'd been passing tarry stools for three days before vomiting blood he must have had a pretty bad bleed.

      Hard to say how long it will take for the colour to become normal. If it's fading, that almost certainly means he's just passing the blood that was already in his digestive tract from the original bleed, and is taking its time coming through. If things aren't back to normal within a week he should contact his doctor, as that could mean they didn't manage to close the ulcer completely, and it's still bleeding a bit.

      As long as he's not showing signs of a new bleed (black diarrhoea, nausea, faintness etc.) he should be OK now. But he'll need to take his medication and will probably be called for a follow-up.

      Hope he continues to recover.

    • Satyaprakash
      Satyaprakash lily65668

      Posted

      Hey there,

      Yes he was given 2 bags of blood during his stay in the hospital. Yes he is taking his medications (2 tablets of omeprazole 20mg in the morning and 2 tablets of ompeprazole 20mg before dinner totally 80mg of omeprazole everyday) and (Dicloxacillin 500mg 4 times a day adding to 2000 mg in a day) and also Anti-flatulents 3 times a day. Anyway we are taking to him another doctor for the second opinion just to ask about his diet and about the duration of black stool.

      Thanks a lot and will keep you updated.

    • lily65668
      lily65668 Satyaprakash

      Posted

      You're obviously doing all the right things and taking good care of him!
    • Satyaprakash
      Satyaprakash lily65668

      Posted

      Hey there lily, Today my dad went to take a second opinion from another well known hospital in town and he told it would take 7 - 10 days for stool to change to normal colour and then after he came home there it was. HE WENT FOR STOOL AND IT WAS NORMAL COLOUR. You should have seen the smile on my face hahaha. Thanks a lot for ur great advice and will keep you guys posted.
    • lily65668
      lily65668 Satyaprakash

      Posted

      So glad to hear that! However, don't worry if you see a few episodes of minor darkening over the next couple of days. Could be that there are a few pockets of digested blood yet to come through from the original bleed.

      I can't help smiling about all this - two complete strangers (I suspect on opposite sides of the globe too) having an in-depth discussion about poop on a public forum! There's a moderator in here who actually reads every word of this stuff, and occasionally steps in. I just hope he wasn't eating his lunch when reading some of this thread!cheesygrin

      All good wishes to you and your father.

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