I am confused by the doctor's reports...

I have eposodes where I feel like something is stuck in my chest and then I experience influx of acid.  My family doctor says it is Acid Reflux or GERD.  Anwyay, for the past 15 years I have had periodic episodes of blood in my stool.  Several years ago my family doctor did a rectal exam and said it was Anal Fissures.  Several months ago, it came back and the bleeding would not stop.  My doctor said my blood work was fine and sent me to a General Surgeon for an Upper GI Endoscope and Colonoscopy.  The surgeon reported that I had a large external hemorroid (even though I had no pain and no blood on the TP when I wiped), inflammation and redness of my stomach, and one polyp high in my colon.  He took a stomach biopsy and sent that and the polyp to a pathologist.  He said both came back find and diagnosed me with 211.3 : BENIGN NEOPLASM OF COLON, 535.50 : UNS GASTRIT&GASTRODUODIT NO HEMORR (according to the paperwork from my insurance.)  However, the insurance paperwork says the diagnosis for the polyp was the same but diagnosed the gastritis as 535.40 : OTH SPEC GASTRITIS W/O HEMOR.  Is there a difference in the two diagnosis?  The General Surgeon said the gastritis is nothing to worry about and he does not know what is causing it.  When asked, he said my GERD is probably caused by my weight.  My question is why did he do the biopsy of the stomach if he thought it was nothing to worry about.  I continue to have breakthrough problems of the blood in the toilet at least once a month for several days at a time.  The Surgeon prescribed me a cream called Proctosol 2.5% and I am unsure if it helps or not.  My stomach hurts often and I have bouts where I am rushing to the bathroom for a bowel movement (usually after I eat something).  Could there be something else wrong or would the testing have showed everything?  I am taking Prilosec OTC in the mornings and Nexium 40 mg in the evenings for the influx and as long as I don't miss many doses, my influx is mainly controlled. 

Hi Laughlin,
Sorry to hear about all your GI problems. You're definitely in the right place. I have also experienced lots of gastritis and have a very reactive stomach. When your stomach is inflamed it's natural to have diarrhea. That's to be expected. Whenever I get a stomach reaction, I can count on diarrhea.

As far as the biopsies. They almost always take them as long as they're down there, so they can get more information for their diagnosis. I wouldn't worry about that. It's a good thing.

External (or internal) hemorrhoids do bleed, and cause a lot of people to worry--it's normal, though. If you've had an endoscopy and colonoscopy, you've had what needs to be done.

It'll take time for your GI tract to calm down and get back to normal. You'll need to be careful about your eating, and give your stomach a chance to heal. I'm sorry to say that the healing process takes time, and you'll have to be patient. My GI doc says that when I'm having that type of problem, I should continue to eat very carefully for two additional weeks after I feel better, then introduce foods into my diet gradually. If my stomach gets bad again, then I'll need to continue my careful eating longer.

Good luck to you! I'm sure you'll get lots of other members responding to your plea.
This is a great forum, and is very active.
Welcome!
Denise