Bacteria

[Marys1358]

Hi Everyone,

I had a Colonoscopy and a Endoscopy the Dr. just called and said its Diverticulia(sp) and also said Bacteria in my stomach and thats what is causing the bloating and stay on Prevacid for a month.Can you tell me how you felt symptoms and how long will it take for my stomach to go down to normal.He also said to eat alot of fiber,veggies and fruit.Then if it does help to take Benefiber does this really work?

I'm hoping someone can explain the Dx's alittle more because you know how fast the Drs. talk so it would be wonderful for an explanation.

Thank you,
Mary

[CalGal]

Mary, the prevacid will not kill off the bacteria. Your doc is not correctly handling the bacterial problem - if that problem is indeed H. pylori. He's going against the currently recommended treatment for the problem and he may be unfortunately prolonging your discomfort. Stomach issues such as reflux, GERD, etc., are hard enough to handle, so he's not doing you any favors.

The other factors in this are: (1) once a person goes on an acid suppression med, it's difficult to get off because of the rebound of the acid - far in excess of the usual production of acid - that occurs in response to discontining the med. Discontinuation has to be done slowly and carefully. You shouldn't just stop the medication. (2) Infection with H. pylori has been implicated in other disorders in the body - outside of the stomach. The current recommendation is to eradicate it when it's found.

Benefiber is to help your diverticular pockets. It has nothing to do with your stomach. For diverticulosis, a high fiber diet has to be maintained. It's thought to help keep the pockets clean and to reduce the chance of diverticulosis turning into diverticulitis - an inflammed state which can lead to severe problems. You can google for suggestions on diet for diverticulosis. I know gicare.com has some suggestions that you can take a look at. Many docs suggest that a person with diverticulosis should stay away from things like seeds, etc., that may get trapped in the pockets and cause problems; other docs don't believe that - you'll have to check with your doc.

[Marys1358]

CalGal thanks for your response.Well right now I'm on Prevacid along with many other meds.But he wants to keep me on that for a month the go off it and start Benefiber IF that doesn't help then start Antibiotics.
Can you still eat pretty much anything with this Dx's?I know I should start a HIGH fiber diet.

Thanks again,
Mary

[CalGal]

If the bacteria in the stomach is H. pylori, you should be starting on 'triple' therapy to get rid of it. If the doc didn't put you on the meds, call him back and make sure you get treated. You'll be taking two antibiotics and an acid suppression med.