knit247 Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 OK - I need help, and know that someone here will be able to point me in the right direction. DH has had diarrhea - often accompanied by severe stomach cramps for 5-6 weeks now, and I am really starting to worry. When this all started, we were in the US - visiting family. He actually woke me early one morning and had me take him to the hospital. I can not tell you how astounding that was, as he won't see a doctor unless he is in an insane amount of pain (to give you an idea, the only time in almost 16 years of marriage that he has ever had me take him to the hospital, he had severe a case of eColi and almost died). At the hospital, they ran blood & urine tests and said nothing looked abnormal and sent us home. Two or three days later he went back to the hospital - same pains. This hospital also did a CAT scan, I believe it's called, ran the same tests, and again found nothing. We are now back in Germany, and it is almost one month later. he is still having the same problems, although the pain is not as severe (or he has gotten used to it). He can tolerate a great deal of pain... WHAT on earth could this be? I Googled chronic diarrhea, and several things came up. FWIW, he has diabetes type 2 and high blood pressure. His diet is not ideal (whose is?), but it has not changed significantly in all of the years that I have known him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 I had a lot of it when I was first showing signs of hyperthyroidism. Enough that I lost 60 pounds within say 6 months or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happygrrl Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 My dh had these exact same symptoms- turns out he had a parasite! Once he took the appropriate de-wormer he was pain free. Gross, I know, but might be worth checking in to. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knit247 Posted October 12, 2011 Author Share Posted October 12, 2011 I had a lot of it when I was first showing signs of hyperthyroidism. My dh had these exact same symptoms- turns out he had a parasite! Once he took the appropriate de-wormer he was pain free. Wouldn't either of these show up in blood work or urine tests? I honestly don't know, but would think they should... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissad2 Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Lots of things come to mind....did he eat cantaloupe in the US? There has been quite a few listeria cases associated with cantaloupe in the US. Has he been on antibiotics for anything? Antibiotics wipe out the good bacteria in the colon and can cause diarrhea and c-diff. If he has taken antibiotics for anything you can replace the good bacteria by taking a probiotic supplement or eating yogurt. Also, sometimes once you get diarrhea it is hard to get back on the right track. My son once had it for weeks and I started giving him benefiber (kind of like metamucil without the taste), it seems counter-intuitive but fiber works both ways. It helps to get things moving if they are slow and slow things down if they are too fast:D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Wouldn't either of these show up in blood work or urine tests? I honestly don't know, but would think they should... Don't you need to bring in a stool sample for something like that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissad2 Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Wouldn't either of these show up in blood work or urine tests? I honestly don't know, but would think they should... No they wouldn't. He would have to have a stool culture that was specifically looking for parasites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Wouldn't either of these show up in blood work or urine tests? I honestly don't know, but would think they should... Not unless there were specific thyroid tests ordered. When you say blood work, do you know specifically what tests were ran? I know when I was getting a diagnosis the doc (specialist) ordered 4 different vials and from those many different tests. None of which my GP did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happygrrl Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Wouldn't either of these show up in blood work or urine tests? I honestly don't know, but would think they should... Dh's blood work was perfect. We only found out because he actually passed a worm (!!!). After that the stool test was redundant. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knit247 Posted October 12, 2011 Author Share Posted October 12, 2011 Lots of things come to mind....did he eat cantaloupe in the US...Has he been on antibiotics for anything? Also...it seems counter-intuitive but fiber works both ways. It helps to get things moving if they are slow and slow things down if they are too fast:D. Nope, no cantaloupe or antibiotics. He tried the Metamucil wafers for awhile but hasn't taken any fiber in several weeks. I'll see if I can get him to at least do the Benefiber. The girls & I do that every day. No they wouldn't. He would have to have a stool culture that was specifically looking for parasites. Ahhh - OK. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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