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Posted 6/19/2010 5:34 PM (GMT 0)
Not sure how long i've had Hep C but have had chronic constipation for approx 10 years.  After searching for years i found the best thing for it (fruit-eze) which is not a laxative just concentrated fruit.  Recently though i have hit another wall.  I have read some on the connection between the gallbladder (i do have gallstones) bile and the liver. Does bad bacteria in the gut play a part in this?  Gastroenterologists have been no help.  Would a a Hepatologist be able to help? Any suggestions would be appreciated, i'm at the end of my rope.
Posted 6/19/2010 6:54 PM (GMT 0)
Hello Sully50 and welcome to HealingWell. There is a distinct connection between liver disease and a bad gallbladder. We just had a post on it within the last couple of weeks about it. Please check on our older posts. I can not remember right now what was said . We also have an educational post in our resource folder that has a lot of good information in it. It's at the top of this page.

Glad you found us.........take care...........
Posted 6/19/2010 7:14 PM (GMT 0)

Sully, I also want to welcome you to the forum.  In addition, I'd like to advise you to see a hepatologist.  If you have hep C, you should be seeing one regularly.  When you say you are at the end of your rope, I'm not quite sure what you mean.  Are you referring to digestive problems?  Have you undergone treatment for hep C?  The more background you give us, the more we can help you, although this forum is an adjunct to--not a substitute for--good medical care.

Hugs,

Connie

Posted 6/19/2010 10:15 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the welcome i appreciate it.  I was diagnosed with Hep C in 2003 when i went to a gastroenterologist about my constipation. I stuck with him for a while but it's now time to make an appointment with a hepatologist . I have no digestive problems and have not been treated. I have read a lot of conflicting info about interferon/ribavirin and not sure that is the answer for me. What i meant to say is that i'm at the end of my rope with the constipation. It started slowly about 10 years ago and has gradually gotten worse. I know there is no cure and this forum is not a substitute for good medical care.  I do however plan to do a lot of reading on this site.   Thanks again.
Posted 6/19/2010 10:48 PM (GMT 0)
I wish I could help you...I am going through the same thing myself. Doctors just don't take this seriously! I had my gallbladder out 3 years ago because I had large stones and it had stopped functioning), and have elevated liver enzymes (the doctor hasn't called it Hepatitis - I guess it's mild.) A month ago I went gluten-free and, contrary to everything I've read, it's made my constipation WORSE.
Posted 6/19/2010 10:53 PM (GMT 0)
Sully, as far as I know, there is no connection between constipation and hep C. Are you getting enough fiber? You should be eating a lot of fresh fruit and veggies, anyway, for your liver and bodily health. Abstain from red meat. Have you tried Metamucil or Miralax?

There is a new hep C treatment, which adds Telaprevir to the combo, and is showing a 70% clearance in trials. This should be widely available in the first half of 2011--yet another reason for you to see a hepatologist, to discuss this option. Left untreated, hep C can lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer--and I speak from personal experience about this. I am very fortunate to still be here.

Do read the info in the hepatitis folder and the older posts here. You will find tons of info.

ETA: Achey, if you have elevated liver enzymes, be sure to ask to be tested for viral hepatitis and autoimmune hepatitis. My enzymes have never been sky-high, but I do have chronic active hep C, cirrhosis, and am a liver cancer survivor. When they first became elevated, there was no test for hep C and my primary care doctor at the time just brushed off the elevation saying it wasn't important. A year or two later, I changed docs and hep C testing was positive.

Hugs,
Connie
Posted 6/20/2010 12:35 AM (GMT 0)
Many of us have experience with lactulose or enulose. They're prescribed for encephalopathy when the liver isn't processing ammonia. I don't know if you're having that problem, but perhaps a hepatologist could take a look. Anyone who's used lactuose knows it's a laxative. I went through 5 years constant diarrhea, the exact opposite of your problem. Either way, see a hepatologist, ASAP. **David**
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