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Frequency of Diarrhea

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Irritable Bowel Syndrome
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Posted 3/2/2012 12:42 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, I just wanted to See how many of you have symptoms as bad as mine? I sometimes have diarrhea as much as 20-30 times a day. As you can imagine this gets old quite quickly. I'm basically a prisoner in my home on those days. My stools are also never formed, just watery and look like coffe grounds but without the coffee color. Just a little lighter. Is this normal for IBS. My GI has ruled out crohns and ulcerative colitis and I'm still waiting for my scope which just got pushed back 10 days, frustrating me even more. I have a lot of bloating and gas iny abdomen, also. Is this normal for IBS'rs?
Posted 3/3/2012 12:49 AM (GMT 0)
How can your GI rule out Crohn's or UC if you haven't had a scope? A colonoscopy is one of the foremost tests used in diagnosing Crohn's or UC. Hopefully you will get some answers when you have your scope.
Posted 3/3/2012 1:28 AM (GMT 0)
Oops, I meant my endoscopy had been delayed. I have had a colonoscopy an A barium contrast CT scan. He did not find anything even in the biopsy.He also did some blood tests looking for inflammation. It just seems like this is a lot of diarrhea for IBS. Is it? Or is it just my faulty thinking? Anybody want
To tell me their experiences? I'm just so confused by this because it came on December 26th so suddenly. I've never had any issues before. My GP had me do a bunch of fecal tests that all came back negative except one specific test came back with very high white blood cell counts which 90 percent Indicates Crohns or Ulcerative Colitis. My sister has had Crohns since she was in her 20's so I figured that's what I would be diagnosed with. I am a 46 year old female if that matters. Any other tests that I should ask about?
Posted 3/3/2012 7:43 PM (GMT 0)
There are over 20 feet of small bowel that cannot be visualized during a colonoscopy. If Crohn's is located in that portion of the small bowel it doesn't necessarily appear on a CT scan either. I do think that 20-30 times a day is over-the-top for IBS. Also, the sudden onset of symptoms makes me think it is likely something other than IBS. If nothing is found on the upper endoscopy, I would push for a capsule endoscopy. The patient swallows a capsule with a small camera in it. It takes thousands of images as it goes through the bowel. The GI then looks at those for abnormalities in the small bowel.

Your strong family history plus the high stool white count makes me think you should be aggressively worked up for Crohn's before saying you have IBS. Let us know what is found on the scope.
Posted 3/3/2012 7:55 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you so much. That is what I thought, too. I've never heard of such a sudden onset of IBS. I don't think my insurance covers the capsule camera. But I am certainly going to check.
Posted 3/10/2012 6:45 PM (GMT 0)
I used to go 18 times a day or more. My whole day used to revolve being in places where I had public restroom access. Eventually my GI doc put me on Lotronex. Its side effects can be dangerous, but the benefits outweigh the problems, IF you truly are part of that 2% of extreme IBS-D women. But truly, pursue the Crohn's because so many folks are misdiagnosed with IBS when all along they were Crohn's. Good luck to ya!! ;o)
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