In a mess:

Hi all,

Need to get my thinking straight and some advice if possible.

I was admitted to hospital on the 29th of last month as my UC had been flaring uncontrollably for almost a year. I was essentially incontinent; watery bloody stools as many as 7 times a day.

For 7 days I was kept in hospital and injected with hydrocortisone 100mg 4 times daily, and this brought stool frequency and urgency down to a few times a day, rarely blood.. stools semi-formed, though nowhere near normal. A sigmoidoscopy revealed bowel was still quite inflamed despite treatment, active left hand and traverse involvement.

Additionally, liver function has become deranged, spleen is enlarged and the doctors are concerned the gallbladder may also be inflamed, though no structural damage was apparent on ultrasound. (Ever since I've gotten back, have had a very dull pain on the right hand side).

After 7 days of steroids I was told I could go home with a tapering dose of 40mg of pred which I am on now, and 6MP. But I have already tried Azathioprine and was intolerant, and was urged by my IBD nurse to be more aggressive so I had my first dose of Infliximab.

So now I am home on my 3rd day of 40mg of pred and 3 days on from my first dose of Infliximab. I have the following questions.

During my stay in hospital I picked up an infection because of the cramped and unsanitary conditions - and now have a cough. My GP has given me a precautionary course of antibiotics, but I haven't taken them yet as I am somewhat concerned they will either make my colitis worse or interfere with Infliximab - is that the case?

Secondly, since I've returned home stools have been very variable.. mostly loose, as before, though frequency and urgency is down. I am most baffled by the fact that for the whole time I've had UC many foods just come out exactly as they went in. Potato skins, nuts, carrots, beans, peas, lettuce.. anything slightly high in fibre passes unscathed. Could this signal bigger problems than UC?

I guess all I can do now is try and hold tight and get my loading doses of Infliximab over with because I feel that steroids aren't really controlling the illness at all anymore. Even at 40mg I barely feel the effects, good or bad. How long did others take to see results?

Thanks.

Hi,

It is hard to tell if there is any improvement yet - as I say, stools have been very variable and I also am on a high dose of pred.

Last time I was checked albumin levels were normal, but I will ask before the next dose. I just hope I can clear this infection in the meanwhile.

Yeah, I thought undigested food was a simple product of transit time.. but even when BMs are spaced apart often it can be a lot of undigested food in the end, though. Hence why I was somewhat concerned it could be a problem with gallbladder/liver digesting.

Your story gives me hope John! I was hesitant to start on the biologics but now I'm all in. Can't wait for the next dose. Let's roll the dice.

Even if your transit time was perfect...many of the foods you mention are insoluble and don't disappear in digestion. They serve a purpose in stool consistency etc and are usually concealed in formed stool.
Don't focus on that aspect too much, but do peel apples and chew foods well.

Fibre supplemts taken with meals and antispasmodics can help a bit to slow transit time.

q