Help me figure this out, I am lost and stumped…
Posted , 10 users are following.
47-year old male
Symptoms:
Excessive gas. Belch after drinking water even. Wind is excessive and over the 25 times per day average.
More of a pinch type of pain in the back upper right between spine and shoulder blade.
Wake up at like 3 am every night to sounds of my intestines “running” -just seem to rumble
Cramping but not real bad pain just feels kind of full
Alternate weeks between loose stool and more solid stool. It used to be textbook brown and now it is a lighter brown. Sometimes undigested food bits when the stool is loose.
In the last few months I woke up like two times with acid reflux in my throat
Physical exam that doctor did of my abdomen was normal no pain when they pushed and no lumps
Tests they have run already:
Upper endoscopy: H Pylori negative, minor reflux, mild inflammation, nothing major
Ultrasound: clear
Blood tests: Liapase normal, amylase normal, comprehensive blood panel normal (with the liver blood tests), CBC/Diff blood panel normal, an extra liver enzyme test called L GGT blood test normal, L Celiac Ab blood panel normal no celiac, TSH3 blood test for thyroid normal.
Urine test: normal
Fecal tests: Pancreatic Elastase stool normal, 4 different test for parasites infections: Cryptosporidium; Stool culture for Sal, Shig, Campy, and Shiga; stool ova and parasite exam; and stool C difficile toxins A+B, EIA all negative
On Tuesday of this week they are doing colonoscopy and while there they will sample tissue for microscopic colitis.
Any thoughts on what this could be? I just want thoughts based on your own experiences I appreciate that no one can diagnose me from a distance.
What other tests would you request?
0 likes, 22 replies
david12137
Posted
Hi All,
I wanted to send a quick update...
I survived the colonoscopy today. For anyone who hasn't done this test yet,the preparation for it is kinda rough. The worst part in my opinion is the taste of the drink. It has to be a biohazard it is so foul tasting lol All I can say is think of your happy place because that preparation day is going to wear you out.
As for my results, they found two different polyps in the sigmoid part of the colon that were each 2mm in size. The GI doctor sent them off for cancer check but he did not seem worried by the way they appeared...
They also took a sample from a part called the Cecum to check for microscopic colitis.
They thought the results would be ready in about a week. If anyone has any questions about the procedure i'm happy to share whatever info I can to help.
All the best,
David
Kileen david12137
Posted
Hi David
Did you get your results back?
sarah45050 david12137
Posted
Have you been tested for SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth) yet?
david12137 sarah45050
Posted
Hi Sarah,
Not yet. I am going to ask for that at my next appointment. Have you been tested for that?
Best wishes,
David
sarah45050 david12137
Posted
I'm sorry I did not respond earlier. Yes. I was tested and positive for SIBO. Had 5 months of herbal treatment.
dylan94293 david12137
Posted
Hi david12137,
This sounds very very familiar. Of course everyone is different, but hopefully can put you at some level of ease. It's been about 5 years for me since symptoms like this started. I had numerous serum tests (liver, pancreas, blood count etc) as well as Ultrasound and 2 MRIs, all showed nothing of note. I have been bucketed into an undefined functional digestive issue (ie IBS). However, once I stopped fearing the worst my symptoms greatly reduced. Anxiety plays such an underappreciated role.
I do have occassional times where symptoms seem worse than others, which suggests there is something not quite right, but it certainly doesn't seem life threatening at this point (or even life impairing most days). On the days I have worse symptoms, I try to take note of the offending trigger. Butter is challenging for me I've learned (sometimes), but chicken wings and bacon are no problem. Why? I have no idea. I do know I was convinced of pancreatic issues for a while...
I mention this all because I know how panicked I was for weeks, and it's a miserable feeling. Hope this helps and you have answers. But if you don't have answers, try not to fear the worst and trust your doctors.