do other conditions cause IBS

[mine4wine]

Today I was diagnosed with IBS but the doctor is still sending me to get a colonoscopy and endoscopy to be sure there isn't something else causing my pain and bowel issues. I am wondering if I have a gluten or lactose intolerance. I've had unpredicatable diarreah/gas/loose stools for 3 months and lots of pain in my right side, lower back and sometimes left side or chest for the past month. It doesn't seem to matter what I eat I have pain and crazy gas after every meal. I've had all kinds of tests done and ruled out Gallbladder issues but a surgeon has said that if other problems are ruled out I might consider removing my gallbladder anyway because it might help. I don't know what to think. Has anyone been diagnosed with IBS and then found something else wrong and successfully treated another condition? Or had symptoms of gallbladder issues or gluten intolerance and had success with levsin given to treat IBS?

[patient915]

What product are you talking about?

[RoyCarole]

My wife Carole, kept losing weight and was down from 48kg to 44kg, for 10 years she could not eat any food of any kind with wheat, gluten, dairy, etc that would not make her bowel upset and make her go to the toilet. She was getting very sick and very weak and the next step was to admit her to hospital.

We have spent hundreds of dollars on medications and had been to many doctors, specialists, hospitals and naturopaths and no one could help her as there is no known cure or any relief now, or in the near future.
We came across this natural product by chance, and we know that it works from personal experience and we would love to share it with others.

Carole is now eating cakes, pastries, dairy, wheat, foods with gluten, salads, vegetables, fruit and we also now go out to restaurants and cafes without having to find the bathrooms first. Carole once again has energy, sleeps peacefully through the night and she is back to 48kg again and our friends say she looks great.

Our son who is a personal trainer, was having trouble with his bowel with gluten intolerance after eating dairy products.
After may years he finally came to us and wanted to try this product that had helped his mum to enjoy food again. He is once again eating dairy products without any problems.

[patient915]

I would recommend eliminating all lactose from your diet for 2 weeks to see if that helps.  If it does help, then you can always experiment with taking lactaid pills when you eat lactose to see if that works.  This doesn't mean that you will have to give up dairy forever.

[mine4wine]

Yes I had gluten before the biopsy except the day before because I had a colonoscopy too and so I couldn't eat anything. I had only eliminated lactose for a couple days before I had the pizza but I guess I didn't really think it could be that, plus I love dairy. But now I am thinking I was wrong and I need to try harder. So I didn't have any yesterday and I won't have any for two weeks.

[patient915]

Had you been eating plenty of gluten when they took the biopsy?  How long did you try eliminating lactose for?

[mine4wine]

Thank you. I tried elimanting lactose from my diet and cut back on gluten (gluten is a lot harder to elimante). I had the biopsy done Monday but have not gotten the results yet. I had pizza for dinner last night (which I know has lactose and gluten) and I am in so much pain today! I guess I have to work harder at eliminating these things from my diet.

[patient915]

I would highly recommend against getting your gallbladder out if your ultrasound, CT scan, and HIDA scan were all normal.  Having your gallbladder removed can cause many other problems.  I would recommend you have a blood test to look for celiac disease and the endoscopy with a biopsy for celiac disease is a good idea too.  Do not stop eating gluten if you are going to have these tests done.  Even if that comes back normal, I would recommend eliminating 100% of all gluten (after the tests) for at least 2 months.  I would also recommend eliminating 100% of all lactose from your diet for at least 2 weeks.  I would highly highly recommend you do both of these things before even considering having your gallbladder removed.

[mine4wine]

I had x-rays, Ultra sound, CT scan, and a HIDA scan to rule out gallbladder. The x-rays and CT scan showed large amounts of stool in my colon. I've had blood work done 3 times, the first two times the doctors were looking for hightened liver enzymes and/or white blood cells and I did not have either. The third time was yesterday, have not gotten results yet.
I also gave stool samples and there were no paracytes or bacteria. I go for an endoscopy with a biopsy checking for celiac and colonoscopy on Monday.
I have not changed my diet really....I cut back on the amount of fiber I eat and one weekend I had very little wheat or dairy and I did feel the best I've felt in months but by that Tuesday I was feeling aweful again.
I hope to get some answers from Monday's tests. However, I do not have another appointment with the gastro doctor for 3 months. I have a follow up with the surgeon that thinks I need my gallbladder removed in 2 weeks. So I am trying to decide if removing my gallbladder will help. I guess if nothing shows up I might get the gallbladder removed but I don't want surgery if my symptoms can be explained with another condition.

[patient915]

Welcome to the IBS community!  Often gluten intolerance, lactose intolerance, IBS, and many other conditions have the exact same symptoms.  Have you had a HIDA scan and an ultrasound?  Have you tried eliminating all lactose from your diet for at least 2 weeks?  Have you had an endosocpy with a biopsy of your small intestine to look for celiac disease or blood work for celiac disease or tried eliminating all gluten from your diet for 2 months?