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Diverticulitis but cant get colonoscopy

I went to the ER August 5th with bad cramps and fever and had a CT scan. I was told I had diver and given cipro and flagyl and told to go home. About a month later I went for another CT scan and I was feeling better. The doc called me and said there were no changes on scan and gave me same meds again. That night I thought I was having a stroke or heart attack. Went to ER and was told I was allergic to Flagyl and to stop taking it. Was sent to Gastro Dr and she said there may be a tumor on my CT. She also said she was going on vacation and to call her back in two weeks. If it was a tumor it will still be there:(  
Two weeks of terror went by and I called her. No reply for three days. Called again no reply for several more days. So I called my primary dr who ordered another CT scan. He called me back that night and said that there were no signs of a stand alone tumor but the sigmoid colon was still slightly inflamed. He put me on Augmentin. He told me I needed a colonoscopy and to go back to gastro dr.
I see her a few days later and she tells me I need my colon removed because it should have healed by now and told me she couldnt do colonoscopy and to go see a surgon.
Im freaking out. I feel fine and my reg doc said it was better than the last CT so it must be healing. How can I tell if I really need sugery without a colonoscopy?  I dont know what to do.
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Avatar universal
Al,
Son, yes, diverticulitis CAN get out of control and cause all sorts of damage, as the poster Coughting said, and I am doubly SORRY, Al, that I left out of my original post some points on that one.  Diverticulitis MIGHT lead to surgery, and so as I had suggested in my first post, you should go back to your primary, which you said you'd call Monday, and get a new gastro to do the colonoscopy.  But what threw me in your original post was your lady gastro saying you had a TUMOR and then saying you needed your colon removed, and I felt she had jumped the gun.  I tried my best to make you believe she was no good and she didn't know what she was doing, and remind you that your symptoms did not suggest you were in big enough trouble for surgery, so you could throw off the notion you were going to have to get your bowel removed.  Sure, if diverticulitis goes haywire and isn't treated and blows up, the standard treatment is to take out the offending section of bowel.

So, I shall repeat, you most likely do not need surgery in the immediate future, if ever, mainly because you are feeling better and have no symptoms and especially since the CT scan looks better, altho a colonoscopy will be the most accurate determination of your true health status, which I would be very interested to hear what a colonoscopy finds!  So, you are not at the point of needing surgery, in my view, altho it cannot be ruled out, but rather at this point you only need a colonoscopy very soon so they make sure your bowel really IS recovering and doing okay, since the ER said you had diverticulitis when you first came in and originally had some symptoms.

For a colonoscopy, unlike surgery, it's an outpatient procedure.  They give you twilight sedation and put a scope in your bowel and have a real-time look-see at your colon and see if (a) you really do have diverticulitis, and (b) how bad it might be.  That is done on an outpatient basis, the whole thing from going in and out of the offices is two hours, and you're done... no recovery time like surgery has.  Then that gastro will recommend any treatment plan, which would include medicine like the poster CalGal was referring to, and you followup with your primary.

But Al, you keep thinking you're going to have to have surgery, and as I said in my original post, unless you're bleeding to death, your CT scan and symptoms suggest you don't need it right this minute and may NEVER need it.  You DO need a colonoscopy, however, on account of the ER said you have diverticulitis, but not necessarily surgery as the crazy gastro went straight to!  As long as any diverticulitis is kept under control with diet and medicine, and looked at periodically with a colonoscopy scope, and you don't have symptoms, then you have joined a large number of people who have diverticulitis as a matter of routine, especially as people age.

Look, just go back to your primary and start over, which you said you would call him Monday.  And since I made an error in my first post about forgetting the ER thinks you have diverticulitis, your primary should most definitely go ahead and arrange a colonoscopy with a new gastro doc.  Let those two docs decide on a treatment plan, they can let you know if you even have diverticulitis and how bad it is, and then you'll have the right information to understand what all happened to you and what the future looks like as far as surgery needs, if any.

As for insurance, by the way, a colonoscopy is nowhere near as expensive as surgery, it is covered by many insurers since it's a preventative procedure, and if your out-of-pocket gets too much, you can work with the gastro group who does the colonoscopy on a payment plan.  And also, most insurers, IF you get admitted to a hospital for any possible surgery down the road, after the first day in the hospital, they pay 100 percent, and again you can arrange payments if your insurance only pays, say, 90 percent of hospitalizations.  

By the way, my husband had stage three colon cancer, needed surgery, and he also worked for himself, and he had to give up several thousands in lost work profit, was in the VA hospital for ten days, and after another ten days he could pretty much do what he wanted, just no heavy lifting for a while.  So, the time frame for surgery situations on the bowel are not as grievous as you thought, a month max based on my experience.  But honestly, Al, I really don't think your'e going to wind up as a surgical candidate.  You just need a colonoscopy, that's all, and THEN go from there.

Post back to us and let us know if you understand, and when you call your primary on Monday, also go ahead and make an appointment too and visit him very soon, and ask him to set up a colonoscopy, based on the ER saying you have diverticulitis.  We are all concerned, and I am doubly concerned becuz I left out of my first discussion the diverticulitis part... I switched over to tumor as being a mistake and left behind the ER's diagnosis of diverticulitis.  But I have tried to add it in for this post, so that my advice is completely accurate.
GG
P.S.  THANKS COUGHTING for giving him the lo-down on diverticulitis... I had let that one slip and am sorry.  I wouldn't have even replied again (foot in mouth) but since he came back with more questions, I felt I could help him.  I cannot resist helping when I think I can.
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Avatar universal
Im going to call back my primary on Monday and see what he says. If I need it, I need it but arent there other test they can do first? I mean no one has even checked my blood or anything since two months ago. Im going to the bathroom fine and there was never blood. I got my appitite back and I need to work now because this is my busy season. If Im out of work now I may as well be dead. Im self employed and make 90% of my money between now and spring. If I could do it in the spring it wouldn't be so bad. Plus crappy health insurance is only paying for 70% of all this after hefty deductibles have already been paid. This is so crazy.
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Avatar universal
You need to get a second opinion, but you do need it now.  If you have diverticulitis and it hasn't cleared up with the meds, it could rupture.  That is why it is sometimes necessary to have bowel resection.  It is according to where the divierticulitus is located as to how much they need to remove.
But please, see a new gastro dr.  Ask you gp to get you in asap.  You do not want it to rupture.
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Avatar universal
P.S.  I forgot about the ER saying you had diverticulitis... but I think my comments are still relevant.  I just would have reworded a couple sentences is all.  See, that's why I'M not a doctor!
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Avatar universal
You may want to check out the use of delayed release mesalamine to help control the diverticulitis. There's a new study out that suggests it may be of help in this condition.
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Avatar universal
Ye gads.  First of all, never contact or go see that gastro lady doc again, and next time you see your primary, suggest he consider taking her off his list of referrals.  Secondly, you DO NOT GET SURGERY NOW, that is ridiculous.  You're right, you don't go from "it should have healed by now" to surgery.  They nearly ALWAYS do a colonoscopy first unless you're bleeding to death.  And thirdly, It is unethical and bordering on incompetent for that crazy lady gastro to (1) say you got a tumor and then go on vacation, (2) say you need to have your colon removed since it hasn't healed (what is she on?), and (3) refuse to either set you up for a colonoscopy or do it herself.  That's a first for me.  She needs to be put in shackles and be held in contempt until someone can find out where her brains fell out of her head.

Look, I think the virus you may have had ran its course or your general doc's prescriptions finally killed whatever bacterial INFECTION was going on in your guts (remember, you had FEVER), and also your general doc said the last CT scan looked better than before, plus he's perfectly capable of spotting on a CT that nonexistent tumor the lady gastro imagined you had, plus YOU said you feel fine.  I personally think you could consider thyself healed.  

But in an abundance of caution, do ask your primary if you still need a colonoscopy and/or expert opinion from a gastro, and if so, get referred to ANOTHER gastroenterologist specialist, preferably a gastro doc group practice, just in case you really did have something besides a bacteria or virus in your gut, like the beginnings of diverticulitis.  And have the primary office forward your CT scan pictures and reports to that new gastro guy.  Besides, colonoscopies are routine preventative procedures anyway, and if you have a good result, you're usually cleared for five years until you need another.

I hope my thoughts have helped put things in perspective for you.  And keep in mind, I'm not a doctor, which is why I say talk to your primary again.  But gee whiz, you sure had a bit of bad luck with that lady gastro, that's for sure, and I'm sorry you had to go thru all that.  
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