mucus in diarrhea

[jayrock]

I have had diarrhea for at least three months now.  It is mostly just mucus with a lot of gas. My actual bowel movements are very stringy. I have no pain, except when I hold it, while at work.  I have seen a doctor and had a stool sample and a colonoscopy.  They found blood in the stool and the biopsy from the colonoscopy was negative.  My doctor told me if it doesnt get better to come back in two months and he would schedule me for endoscopy.  I told him that I had been eating a lot of fast food lately.  He told me it could be because of my diet or stress. I have been trying to eat better and I take immodium.  The immodium helps to slow it down, but there is still mucus in my stool. Does anyone have an ideal of what this could be?  Or any suggestions of what to eat?  Should I be worried?

[Kevin Pho, MD]

Hello - thanks for asking your question.

There are many causes of chronic diarrhea.  The prevalence of specific disorders varies based upon the practice setting. The types of disorders described in individual case series frequently reflect referral bias.

As a general rule, the principal causes of chronic diarrhea depend upon the socioeconomic status of the population. In developing countries, chronic diarrhea is frequently caused by chronic bacterial, mycobacterial, and parasitic infections, although functional disorders, malabsorption, and inflammatory bowel disease are also common. In developed countries, common causes are irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease, malabsorption syndromes (such as lactose intolerance and celiac disease), and chronic infections (particularly in patients who are immunocompromised).

Mucousy, greasy stools may be caused by malabsorption syndrome.  The classic manifestations of malabsorption are pale, greasy, voluminous, foul-smelling stools and weight loss despite adequate food intake. However, this spectrum of findings is relatively uncommon, even in generalized mucosal disease. The majority of patients with malabsorption have relatively mild gastrointestinal symptoms, which often mimic more common disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome.

Fatty diarrhea (steatorrhea) should be suspected in patients who report greasy, floating, and malodorous stools and those who are at risk for fat malabsorption, such as patients with chronic pancreatitis. A variety of tests can be used to confirm the diagnosis. Currently, the gold standard for diagnosis of steatorrhea is quantitative estimation of stool fat.

I stress that this answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Thanks,
Kevin, M.D.

[mdp]

I was browsing the net on this subject and came upon this forum. I have been having the same problem though not with diarrhea.  My stool has been this way for over a month. It's so frequent. I even suffer from accute gas and the mucous is expelled during this time too. It isn't expelled just during a bowel movement but the gas also. My gas is so severe that I have to relieve myself at least 30/40 times a day in the RR at work. It interferes with my job, etc. Other than the mucous everything else is normal. Well my bowel movements are more frequent, but nothing really unordinary. What should I do, who should I see since my symptoms are a little different?

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