Think I may have Crohn’s disease help?
Posted , 5 users are following.
hello Im going to the doctors later today im pretty adamant im possibly suffering with crohns disease which has come out of absolutely nowhere! as ive never suffered with my stomach but ive recently had an endoscopy which showed hiatus hernia and gerd which i take omeprazole for and i have a follow up appointment with my GI doc in 6 weeks but im so uncomfortable and im having pains all over my stomach and joint pains in hips and legs my stool changes are all over the place one minute they can look normal next they look like mush but i have noticed im having to strain alot to get bowel movements out I was also getting lots of mouth ulcers and i keep losing and gaining weight as my appetite totally disappears and im getting quite tired but i am having poor sleep quality and major anxiety since this started happening to me but my question is what tests can I demand to go for when i go to the doctors today to test for crohns? i know im inder a GI doctor but i dont think i cant wait the six weeks to see him again im struggling with daily life and scared im going to end up losing my jobs as they are physical and im in pain and surely the doctors can send me for some more test in the mean time? im desperate, thankyou for any replies x
0 likes, 8 replies
Tay63 lau93ren
Posted
You need a full colonoscopy to depict if its Crohns or now. An Endoscopy alone wont tell
jaw90561 Tay63
Posted
yes colonoscpies are definitely more accurate and worthwhile. you can see a lot more of the areas that would be affected by crohns.
I didn't even have to have a full colonoscopy done for the GI doctors to be able to tell as my entire tract was pretty inflamed!
also they can take a biopsy which can be tested in a lab and usually theyll make the diagnosis from that.
sophie98146 lau93ren
Posted
ask your doctor to carry out a calprotection (stool) test. This was the first test I had which started the ball rolling for my Crohn's diagnosis. I had IBS for a number of years and my GP told me that if I have IBS then there should be NO markers of inflammation in your stool, I'm not 100% sure how it's measured but I know that 1-50 is normal and anything outwith is classed as having inflammation, my reading came back at 280. Low and behold after being referred to the hospital for a Colonoscopy and an MRI and not even 5 days after my scan I was diagnosed with Crohn's. Keep persevering with the GP's as I feel they can easily 'brush' off these symptoms where a simple stool test could show something and get closer to a diagnosis. I hope you get down to the bottom of it and if you need any more info or advice please message me.
Gloria814 lau93ren
Posted
I agree with Sophie about the stool test she mentioned but you will also need colonoscopy for definite diagnosis but the stool test is a quicker check until you see Gi doc
Good luckIt is a terrible long process. I have crohn's and inflammatory arthritis - which causes much joint pain. I am on a biologic but it has side effects.
Tay63 lau93ren
Posted
my consultant told me the stool tests aren't conclusive so a colonoscopy is a must
jaw90561 Tay63
Posted
yes agree. although at least the calprotectin will give you a fair idea of what's wrong and you could hopefully get the process sped up. they may even put you on steroids in the meantime to get the systems settled whilst you wait for a colonoscopy procedure appointment. that's what my sister had done anyway! 😃
as sophie says there is a "normal" marker that it should be within so itll be a tell tale sign if its anything over that. I think initially mine came back at almost 500. I've known others to be in the 1000s!! and that's pretty awful.
jaw90561 lau93ren
Posted
hello, first of all I'm really sorry to hear you are suffering so much. it's really not nice having to put on a brave face and keep going when you dont have any answers yet!
Before I was diagnosed I had numerous tests done like blood tests, stool tests, urine tests etc and all was coming back clear. however when I went to the ER for about the 5th time, they decided to do an X-ray as a last resort.
they then admitted me to hospital immediately because it showed that my large bowel was really inflamed. I would suggest that you ask for an xray of your bowels or abdomen as itll show them the inflammation and theyll then have proof to be able to do further investigations straight away which will speed up the GI process.
I then had a ct scan after I was admitted and a partial colonoscopy the following day from which they took a biopsy. it then was diagnosed as crohns disease...
also, try not to stress even more by worrying about your job etc. I know it's hard not too but itll only make your symptoms worse! I actually lost my job about a year ago due to my crohns causing me to be Ill and absent...however it has 100% worked out in my favour as I'm loads better off and happier where I am now!!
I hope you get help soon!!! ATB 😃
anthony51986 lau93ren
Posted
hi . lou93en.
sorry to hear you have what you think you have, make sure you get B12 injections from your docs. b12 is only absorbed at the ileus section of the bowel , & also check you have no Candida -albicans infection . something to do with Zinc ? , but that just my thoughts. maybe taking drinks of sodium bicarb , but just read about it first. good luck .