Diarrhoea
What do we mean by diarrhoea?
This is when the stool weighs more than 250 grams in a day, or when the water content of the stool is high, at least 75%.
Another criterion is if the number of bowel movements is at least 3 per day.
What questions should I be prepared to ask when I go to the doctor with this problem?
Long-standing, pathological diarrhoea not only makes life miserable, but can also lead to deficiency diseases.
It can also be a sign of more serious illnesses and should be investigated.
If you consult one of our specialists with the symptoms mentioned above, you should be prepared to answer the following questions – you can prepare your answers to these questions on a piece of paper, even before the examination:
- How long has the diarrhoea lasted?
(If it has been at least 3 weeks, it is chronic diarrhoea.) - What is its nature?
Lubricating, oozy, wet, foamy, other? - Is it related to food?
Have you observed certain trigger foods? - Do you defecate at night?
- Do abdominal cramps accompany diarrhoea?
Do the winds stop when the stools pass? - Have you seen blood, bloody drool during a bowel movement?
- Was there a fever, weight loss?
- Have you had any recent surgery or X-rays?
- Does anyone else around you have acute diarrhoea?
- Have you been to a distant country?
- Have you had any antibiotic treatment recently?
How is diarrhoea investigated?
There are a number of ways to test, most of which can be done at the ProctoMed Center:
- Faecal culture, digestion test, faecal blood test, faecal pancreas specific elastase-1, faecal bile acid test.
- Hydrogen (H2) expiration test: detects lactose sensitivity, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, small intestinal motility and can also rule out fructose sensitivity.
- Food intolerance (Food Detevtive) test: 45-minute food intolerance test using 1 drop of finger prick blood for 46 types of food.
- Abdominal ultrasound: shows larger tumours, abdominal conglomerates, abscesses, intestinal wall thickness, intestinal distension, intestinal wall stratification).
- Gastroscopy of the stomach and duodenum, with sampling (for tumours, polyps, inflammation, bleeding, Helicobacter infection, celiac disease, malabsorption).
- Rectoscopy, colonoscopy.
