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Gastroenterology (Expert Forum)
An ulcer that shouldnt exist?
This forum is for questions regarding Gastroenterology issues such as Acid Reflux (GERD), Barretts Esophagus, Colitis, Colon/Bowel Disorders, Crohn's Disease, Diverticulitis/Diverticulosis, Digestive Disorders, IBS, Stomach Pain.
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An ulcer that shouldnt exist?
by Toeboy, Jun 12, 2002 12:00AM
I was an incredibly fit & healthy young man until I met a young lady - my first girlfriend. I NEVER had stomach problems UNTIL her. I shared drinks, kissed & sucked her toes.
Within a few weeks to a month I developed diarrhoea and nausea. For a further month I had this plus IBS symptoms. It then developed into a gnawing pain in my stomach area and I could no longer eat. I went to the doctor who said it was just a bit of excess acid (no explanation as to why) and prescribed Cimetidine. I had to take 1600mg a day to get any relief. A week later my glands were swollen and a blood test confirmed glandular fever(mono). I got over the fever & stomach problems and came off the Cimetidine. I was fine for 6 weeks but then the IBS came back and sometimes I would get severe diarrhoea. The severe diarrhoea increased in frequency until 6mths later the gnawing pain started again. I also feel cold, get really bad chills and pass undigested food. I tried cimetidine and now PPI's which provide some relief. 2 blood tests said I was HP-. All other blood tests appeared normal.
In the end I couldnt eat and lost a lot of weight. Finally the doctors agreed to an endoscopy even though "we won't find anything, its only IBS". Wrong! They saw a duodenal ulcer & the lining of my stomach was damaged and on the road to ulceration. I am definitely HP- and I don't use NSAIDS. I dont drink/smoke & have a healthy diet. I used to be incredibly fit before this illness & always ate healthily. How can I have an ulcer? What did I get from the girl? She has no problems, neither do her ex's. Any ideas?
Within a few weeks to a month I developed diarrhoea and nausea. For a further month I had this plus IBS symptoms. It then developed into a gnawing pain in my stomach area and I could no longer eat. I went to the doctor who said it was just a bit of excess acid (no explanation as to why) and prescribed Cimetidine. I had to take 1600mg a day to get any relief. A week later my glands were swollen and a blood test confirmed glandular fever(mono). I got over the fever & stomach problems and came off the Cimetidine. I was fine for 6 weeks but then the IBS came back and sometimes I would get severe diarrhoea. The severe diarrhoea increased in frequency until 6mths later the gnawing pain started again. I also feel cold, get really bad chills and pass undigested food. I tried cimetidine and now PPI's which provide some relief. 2 blood tests said I was HP-. All other blood tests appeared normal.
In the end I couldnt eat and lost a lot of weight. Finally the doctors agreed to an endoscopy even though "we won't find anything, its only IBS". Wrong! They saw a duodenal ulcer & the lining of my stomach was damaged and on the road to ulceration. I am definitely HP- and I don't use NSAIDS. I dont drink/smoke & have a healthy diet. I used to be incredibly fit before this illness & always ate healthily. How can I have an ulcer? What did I get from the girl? She has no problems, neither do her ex's. Any ideas?
I did catch the mono from her. My stomach problems started halfway through the incubation period of the mono but the doctors say that the illness could not have weakened me enough to cause a deterioration in my stomach lining. I could have caught HP from her but tests indicate that I didn't. I suppose I could have caught almost any kind of bacteria or parasites from sucking her toes but the docs say that only HP could cause ulcers. Could a parasite infection cause a huge increase in acid production? Can it be coincedence that my stomach problems started at the same time as the mono?
If I did have excess acid produced by stress then surely taking 30mg lansoprazole twice daily would be more than adequate to completely alleviate the symptoms?
Is it common for people with ulcers to suffer from the chills, pass undigested food or suffer diarrhoea? Ive only ever heard of ulcers and diarrhoea in the case of ZE syndrome and stress cannot cause that ammount of excess acid or can it? I may be a bit stressed now because of the illness but when it started I certainly was not. I was always out jogging which I found to be a good way of relaxing. Anyway I never had these problems when under massive stress at university. Ive never suffered from heartburn either.
Im confused because everything I read says that 90% of duodenal ulcers are HP related and the other 10% are caused by NSAIDS. So whats causing mine?!?!