Urgency and Mucous

I have been diagnosed with mild-moderate UC for about 10 years (I'm 25 now). Since December 2009 I have been dealing with increased urgency and I feel like I constantly have to have a BM but when I do go to the bathroom all that comes out is either large amounts of green mucous and/or blood. This happens 10-20 times a day. For the most part when I do have an actual BM it is normal and not diarrhea. I have also been dealing with extreme fatigue sleeping 10-12 hours a day, dizziness and both right and left lower quadrant cramping pain.

My last hemoglobin was in July and was 12.8 so I'm not overly concerned about being anemic and my last colonoscopy was in April which showed active left sided colitis which was improved as my prior scope had shown pan-colitis.

I'm posting on here because I'm frustrated as every appointment I make with my GI is the same. He says "Well you are in a flare, let's give you some Rowasa and come back in 3 months. It's now been almost a year and I cannot keep living like this. The green mucous symptom is what is concerning me the most and if I wasn't a super fast runner I think I'd be incontinent and I'm 25... This is embarrassing and it sucks as I'm trying to make a good impression at work and for the most part have to stay within close range of a bathroom at all times... Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated, thanks!

Also: currently I'm on Imuran 100 mg day, Lialda 2.4 g day, and just finished a course of Rowasa and Flagyl. My GI said I have been on too much prednisone so he will not be prescribing it anytime soon.

Hi..welcome to the forum if I haven't done so already.

I think you need to persist with your GI that you have stool samples done regarding the green mucus. Since you were already on flagyl and not improved, it's best to have it checked on.

Regarding the Rowasa..how long were you on them and why did you stop?

I think you have more going on than just a flare.

Are you taking any probiotics? maybe something to consider.

q

Jbeachgirl,

Is there any tangible evidence of infection according to your Doc? He must suspect it if he had you take flagyl. Quincy may have a good point that the infection angle should be followed up to see if it has totally cleared up, if there was one in the first place.

What were the results of your last scope? How far up did the inflammation go? My doc always gives me a detailed exam result after a scope. I don't know if all GI docs do that.

It's fine for him to say that he doesn't want you taking any more steroids if he has some viable alternative because 10-20 Bm's a day is not something you can live with.

If you live outside the U.S. (sorry I didn't check your profile to see if you put in a location), entocort enemas are steroid based but don't suppress your adrenal system like hydrocortisone based rectal meds can.

Did the rowasas help at all? Sometimes getting up early in the AM to do a second one can really help too if the one overnight doesn't totally do the trick.


How long have you been off prednisone?

Did you notice any improvement while doing the rowasa enemas?

Black for me is a great sign, when the blood is black looking, then it has always gotten me into remission.

Why does your GI doc have you stop after a couple of weeks?

If I were you, I would really consider asking the Doc about staying on the rowasas for a longer period of time, indefinitely if necessary. And I would ask the doc to forget the flagyl if at all possible. That stuff is kinda nasty, and it sounds like it is pointless in your case.