Old newbie needs help!
Moderators: Rosie, Stanz, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Old newbie needs help!
I was diagnosed with LC almost 10 years ago. Tried most of the medical treatments. None of which worked, due to hives and swelling lip and tongue with many drugs, especially antibiotics an Lialda. Problems with Endocort .Gluten free for 18 months. Grain free for a year. Auto immune problems improved tremendously. Lupus antibodies almost normal. Scleroderma(morphea) gone etc. Genetic test for gluten sensitivity positive on all counts. Mostly dairy free as per fodmap. A little cheese. Low fiber. Going along not great but ok and manageable. Feb 19 got stomach flu from visiting dear old friend in a nursing home. Got better in two days but gut will not improve. Intense cramping . Stools mainly mucus being ripped from my gut. Some water D . Can eat but afraid of much more than a scrambled egg. Jello and broth hasn't helped and the cramps are almost unbearable . Called gastroenterologist last Friday and got in yesterday. Gave me samples of riflaxin but scared to take them due to tendency to lip or worse yet tongue swelling and possibility of cliff. Any advice suggestions or ideas would be appreciated!! Love this site! Have the book and really respect your opinions! Help please!
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Gabes-Apg
- Emperor Penguin
- Posts: 8332
- Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:12 pm
- Location: Hunter Valley NSW Australia
welcome back May
are you supplementing with Vit D3 and magnesium?
I would skip the jello for now (high sugar) and stick with home made bone broth type meals with good protein serves
I would also skip the eggs for now (in case they are contributing to inflammation)
and definately no diary while things are this inflamed.
are you supplementing with Vit D3 and magnesium?
I would skip the jello for now (high sugar) and stick with home made bone broth type meals with good protein serves
I would also skip the eggs for now (in case they are contributing to inflammation)
and definately no diary while things are this inflamed.
Gabes Ryan
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
Hello Mav,
Welcome to our Internet family. I'm sorry that your symptoms won't let up. I wonder if you might have picked up a C. diff infection in addition to a flu virus. C. diff bacteria are a constant threat at nursing facilities. The intense cramping suggests that you might have picked up a C. diff infection.
Rifaximin was developed to treat traveler's diarrhea. It has been shown to be effective for treating C. diff infections. Many members here have tried a rifaximin treatment (or repeated treatments) for their MC, and to the best of my knowledge, no member of this forum has ever derived any lasting benefit from the use of that antibiotic. In some cases it has appeared to help for a week or 2, but then symptoms returned. Repeat treatments were not effective, either. So if your symptoms are due to your MC, then the rifaximin probably will not provide any lasting benefits. However, if you have a C. diff infection, then it may resolve your symptoms.
I'm kind of surprised that your doctor did not want to do a stool culture to verify or rule out a C.diff infection before prescribing an antibiotic. Also, rifaximin is not typically the first choice of antibiotics used for treating a C. diff infection. That leads me to believe that your doctor didn't even suspect a C. diff infection. She or he probably thinks that rifaximin will control MC symptoms. Our experience here among many members shows that it will not resolve an MC flare. But it's worth a try, in my opinion, if you have a C. diff infection.
I hope that this is helpful. And again, welcome aboard and please feel free to ask anything.
Tex
Welcome to our Internet family. I'm sorry that your symptoms won't let up. I wonder if you might have picked up a C. diff infection in addition to a flu virus. C. diff bacteria are a constant threat at nursing facilities. The intense cramping suggests that you might have picked up a C. diff infection.
Rifaximin was developed to treat traveler's diarrhea. It has been shown to be effective for treating C. diff infections. Many members here have tried a rifaximin treatment (or repeated treatments) for their MC, and to the best of my knowledge, no member of this forum has ever derived any lasting benefit from the use of that antibiotic. In some cases it has appeared to help for a week or 2, but then symptoms returned. Repeat treatments were not effective, either. So if your symptoms are due to your MC, then the rifaximin probably will not provide any lasting benefits. However, if you have a C. diff infection, then it may resolve your symptoms.
I'm kind of surprised that your doctor did not want to do a stool culture to verify or rule out a C.diff infection before prescribing an antibiotic. Also, rifaximin is not typically the first choice of antibiotics used for treating a C. diff infection. That leads me to believe that your doctor didn't even suspect a C. diff infection. She or he probably thinks that rifaximin will control MC symptoms. Our experience here among many members shows that it will not resolve an MC flare. But it's worth a try, in my opinion, if you have a C. diff infection.
I hope that this is helpful. And again, welcome aboard and please feel free to ask anything.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Thanks for the advice!! Usually take 5,000 d a day and am using the topical
Spray-form of magnesium. Will definitely stay off dairy and cut the eggs. I haven't had an antibiotic in 10 years because I have a tendency for an immune response. (Angioedema and
Hives.) He said this was less likely to cause that problem as it was mostly absorbed in the GI
Tract and non systemic) . Cramps are a lot better. Also wondering A very dumb question. Can
One do the Entero lab food testing with only watery d as a stool sample? Would like to. Just
Wondered? Thanks again for your help!! This site is a wonderful resource and comfort!!!
Spray-form of magnesium. Will definitely stay off dairy and cut the eggs. I haven't had an antibiotic in 10 years because I have a tendency for an immune response. (Angioedema and
Hives.) He said this was less likely to cause that problem as it was mostly absorbed in the GI
Tract and non systemic) . Cramps are a lot better. Also wondering A very dumb question. Can
One do the Entero lab food testing with only watery d as a stool sample? Would like to. Just
Wondered? Thanks again for your help!! This site is a wonderful resource and comfort!!!
Mav,
Yes, that's one of rifaximin's strong selling points — it's claimed to be less systemic than most antibiotics so it's less likely to cause side effects outside the digestive system.
And yes, it's mighty likely that EnteroLab sees mostly diarrhea-prone samples. It will need to have at least a minimal amount of somewhat solid material in it though in order to provide reliable results. That is to say, "mud" is much better than "water". If it's really watery, you may need to catch multiple samples and pour off or dip out some or most of the "water" in order to condense it down somewhat.
You're very welcome,
Tex
Yes, that's one of rifaximin's strong selling points — it's claimed to be less systemic than most antibiotics so it's less likely to cause side effects outside the digestive system.
And yes, it's mighty likely that EnteroLab sees mostly diarrhea-prone samples. It will need to have at least a minimal amount of somewhat solid material in it though in order to provide reliable results. That is to say, "mud" is much better than "water". If it's really watery, you may need to catch multiple samples and pour off or dip out some or most of the "water" in order to condense it down somewhat.
You're very welcome,
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I am thinking that with watery samples they probably routinely centrifuge for concentration. Their web site doesn't make any mention of not being able to work with watery samples. Emailing them, or giving them a call would provide the definitive answer, though.
Rosie
Rosie
Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time………Thomas Edison