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Gastroenterology (Expert Forum)
Excessive Mucus in Bowel Movements
Answered by
Kevin Pho, MD - Internal Medicine
Kevin Pho, MD
Boston - MA
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.
Excessive Mucus in Bowel Movements
by 0bsurf, Sep 27, 2005 12:00AM
I'm a 52 year old woman in excellent health except for this problem that began Aug. 2004 after vacation in Mexico. It started with an ache in my left side below rib cage & change in bowel movements. I am frequently constipated, crampy in lower abdomen, sore in upper abdomen & every bm has a lot of mucus. In the last 3 months, the condition worsened & now I have excessive gas, bloating & 3-6 bm's per day, usually within 15-30 minutes after eating. They range from just gas, clumps of mucus or hard, light color stool mixed with mucus & weird texture, like ribbed or braided, & everything seems to move around like there's something alive in there. Also lots of undigested food. I initially thought (& still do) I had a parasite, I saw dr. last Oct. & had stool tested for ova/parasites which came back negative. I went to another dr. 3 weeks ago & he said I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome, did some bloodwork & barium enema & said everything came back normal. I did some research & my symptoms suggest h pylori. I haven't found very specific symptoms for h pylori, but since it lives in stomach mucosa, would it create all this mucus I have with bm? I also read that it inhibits blood clotting & I had an unusual episode with a small cut on my foot I wasn't aware of until I noticed my shoe was completely covered in blood with 2 big globs of mucus. So I called the dr. office to ask if h pylori test was done (it was not) so I scheduled another appt. Prior to the appt I had severe discomfort & several bm's, the last I expeled a large clot of blood. I went to urgent care & tested positive for h pylori & they gave me stool sample pak for parasites which I dropped off yesterday. Tests for liver, pancreas, gallbladder & kidney were all good. Is h pylori bacterium visible by magnifying glass or home microscope with up to 80X magnification? Because I've looked at images on internet & it sure looks similar to what I've seen in this mucus & blood. Also, I've been coughing up large amounts of mucus & have had a lot in nose & throat, & looks the same as mucus with bm, usually clear with yellow/brown areas. I saw dr. yesterday & he said h pylori is not causing my symptoms & scheduled sigmoidoscopy, gave me 6 wk samples of protonix & scrip for levsin. Wouldn't upper GI to check for ulcers & triple antibiotic regime be more appropriate? I thought I was on my way to recovery but a big ego seems to be getting in the way. I'd appreciate your input regarding my symptoms, particularly the mucus.
Doctor's Answer
by Kevin Pho, MD, Sep 27, 2005 12:00AM
, Sep 27, 2005 12:00AM
If the H Pylori test was positive, then it would make sense for appropriate antibiotic treatment to be considered.
I am not aware of diarrhea and mucous of the stools being symptoms of H Pylori, so it is reasonable to consider a lower endoscopy. Colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, or malabsorption syndrome can all lead to the symptoms you describe. The sigmoidoscopy (or colonoscopy) can help in the evaluation.
You probably won't be able to see H Pylori with a magnifying glass or home microscope.
Further tests to consider would be a CT scan to evaluate for chronic pancreatitis, or stool tests to evaluate for fat malabsoprtion - each which can cause mucous in the stool.
These options can be discussed with your personal physician.
Followup with your personal physician is essential.
This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.
Kevin, M.D.
http://www.straightfromthedoc.com
I am not aware of diarrhea and mucous of the stools being symptoms of H Pylori, so it is reasonable to consider a lower endoscopy. Colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, or malabsorption syndrome can all lead to the symptoms you describe. The sigmoidoscopy (or colonoscopy) can help in the evaluation.
You probably won't be able to see H Pylori with a magnifying glass or home microscope.
Further tests to consider would be a CT scan to evaluate for chronic pancreatitis, or stool tests to evaluate for fat malabsoprtion - each which can cause mucous in the stool.
These options can be discussed with your personal physician.
Followup with your personal physician is essential.
This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.
Kevin, M.D.
http://www.straightfromthedoc.com
Which part of Mexico did you visit and what did you eat and drink?
If you can find a local pharmacy in the town where you had visited,they may give you some insight what is wrong with you,start with the hotel or tour operator and ask them to point you to the right doctor or pharmacist.
There is such thing called Montezuma revenge in some part of Mexico.
Thank you for your input.
While the nausea calmed down the ovarian cyst grew so THAT specialist (OBgyn) decided the nausea had been due all along to the cyst which was now 4 in. by 3 in. Even more bizarre.
Now the kicker here is that this all started end of August. We were getting end-of-hurricane storms, mom's electricity went out. She was out of town. I flew in from Europe (that raised eyebrows but I lived there for years without incident) and had to clean out the refrigerator that had sat in 100 degree heat for 5 days. Just DOing that made me nauseaus and then it never went away.
I have suspected all along a parasite but the traditional parasite test done by the gastrenterologist was negative. He thinks it's my IBS but my IBS has never acted like THIS!
The urologist thinks it's my bladder which was suddenly inflamed, too. And no one seems to know why the cyst in my ovary blew up so fast.
I think they're all related. I was very run down cleaning out that refrigerator... 22-hour flight, 5 hours of sleep... prime candidate to have a bad reaction to something inhaled. But not one doctor will subsribe to that theory. Certainly if our bacteria are becoming resistant to antibiotics etc our parasites could change and our tests might not test for everything they need to now. Any comments?