Bloody Mucous In Stool

[DianaRK]

For the past week or two, I have had cramping, mild diarrhea, and occassional bright red bloody mucous in my stool.  Sometimes I also have lower back pain with it.  I have a history of diverticulitis, but am not experiencing of the usual lower left quadrant pain, fever, etc.

I was on naproxen(500 mg) for a hip injury that I sustained a few weeks ago, but only took a total of five tablets out of the 30 I was prescribed, and I have not taken them for over 10 days now.

Could the naproxen be causing these symptoms, or  could it be something else wrong with me?

[Ratnakar Kini, MD]

Hi DianaRK,
Naproxen can cause colitis/proctitis which produces symptoms like bloody mucus in the stool.
But the symptoms disappears once you stop  the drug. If it persists, then you have to look for other causes.
================================================================
The information provided is for patients’ education only and is not a medical advice. Always consult your personal physician for complete evaluation of your health problem.

- Ratnakar Kini M.D.

[DianaRK]

Just an update. I ended up in the ER 6 days ago with severe cramps, diarrhea, and rectal bleeding. They did blood/urine work, rectal exam & a CT scan.  The CT scan showed no active diverticulitis or any inflammation of the colon. There was no fever or elevated white count, so they sent me home after telling me what I already knew, that I have diverticulosis. Their best educated guess was that I developed a bleed in one of my diverticuli and it would heal on it's own. They also said my potassium level was low so they gave me potassium pills before releasing me.

The problem is I am still experiencing horrible abdominal cramping, lower backache and diarrhea daily, but at least the bleeding has stopped. The symptoms are the worst when I first get up in the morning, but by the afternoon and evening they subside.