Diverticulosis

[down_home]

Found out I had Diverticulosis Tuesday. Actually found out I had it in 2010, when I went to hospital with impossible to believe cramping. They had a Surgeon standing by to cut me open, if they couldn't get the tube down my throat. Four miserable days and a 3 hour circular, if that is the term, Cat Scan. They said I was eat up with Diverticulosis.
VA Doctors put a scope down my throat and said I did not have it and could eat anything I wanted. Well almost continual diarhea for 20 years has not been fun. I still am packing quite a bit of weight from 2010 til now too.
Tuesday evening VA ER told me I had it and elevatedd white blood count of 16 I think. IV antibiotics and prescription for short term oral antibiotics. It hasn't done one bit of good.
I just read part of what is posted on Internet and now they say eat pretty much anything including seeds.
Something can't be right there.
Anyway, what do any of you Folks do to or what does your Dr do to treat it?

[PatStab]

My DD has had diverticulosis since she was 25, she has Williams syndrome which has a connective tissue problem along with others. She almost died from infection, no one would believe at her age she could have that. I showed them literature and they ended up doing exploratory surgery, they cut her from under the ribs all the way down and opened her up. They found it, she was septic and they said the body had tried to build a shell around that section of her colon. I guess the odor like to emptied the operating room. They did a resection but said her colon was so rotten that next time it had to all come out.

She has had numerous infections in it through the years, she knows when it comes on her and we make a fast trip to the doc. He kept wanting to remove her colon and I wouldn't let them, with her would have been to hard to care for her.

For a long time they would giver her levaquin by IV, she would be in the ER 12 hours for a bag or 2 to go in. Then we found out that was the one causing tendons to rupture so they went to flagyl,its pretty successful.

We watch her diet, no popcorn, seeds, or nuts. They say a large part is due to low fiber diets, but her trying to increase fiber isn't successful, she has been in the hospital with it several times. Also don't get constipated, really hard on it. They won't do a colonoscopy on her as they are afraid they will rupture it.

I have read that most everyone by the time they get in their 80's have pockets, its common. I think our soft processed food diet has caused it. But it is a horrible condition, she has suffered greatly with it. We just watch for symptoms and treat it quickly, we don't even wait a day if we have to I head for a minor emergency clinic. Take care of yourself.

I don't care what they are telling you, you do have to watch your diet. The last episode she had we were at a carnival and she got a lemonade drink. She said oh mom I swallowed a seed, by day 2 she was sick and we had gone to a doc, he said the seed had likely got in one of the pouches and it got infected, she is careful what she eats still at age 43, but she still has the rest of her colon and not a bag for life, yet.

[Ro_n_Joe]

darsben wrote:
Putting a scope down your throat cannot rule diverticulosis in or out. Diverticulosis is outcroppings or little pouches on your intestine wall. Diverticulosis is the disease of having the pouches only. The problem comes when something cause one or more of the pouches to become inflamed. This sometimes happens when material becomes trapped in the pouch, such as seeds etc. This is diverticulitis and is what causes the pain.
There is no treatment for diverticulosis short of removal of the intestine that has the outcroppings. The treatment for diverticulitis is RX antibiotics and some doctors believe in a bland diet and avoidance of certain foods. If the diverticulitis cannot be treated conservatively then surgery to remove the affected part is usually beneficial. You sound like a possible candidate for surgery. But surgeons are hesitant to operate while you have an infection and that is why the WBC is important here, but I do not understand the 16 and think you misunderstood the number UNLESS they told you 16,000 which is a HIGH WBC and would indicate an infection. So the first thing is to get rid of the DIVERTICULITIS (inflammation) so the diverticulosis (outpouchings) can be taken care of if you are a candidate for surgery.

Spot on information on it here!

[GeoJG]

Glad to hear that KoKo.; Gjac, I'd never heard that. Interesting.; I'll let you know how my GI visit goes.

[kokosfriend]

I usually hang on the Pet Stop, but check here often. This topic could not have come to my attention at a better time. I am happy because my decision to have surgery has been affirmed. Bless you all!

Barb and the 2 chocolates (dogs)

[Gjac]

kokosfriend wrote:
Thank you all for sharing. I have had small are of diverticulosis for a few years with no problem. A few weeks ago I became very ill with diarrhea and vomiting. In one day I went from feeling ok to unable to stand or walk. Ambulance to ER and cat scan showed diverticulitis with a small perforation. 4 days of IV antibiotics and 2 weeks of pills I was fine. The in another 2 weeks - back to ER, but not near as bad. I have a week trip coming up and then a colonoscopy and schedule the surgery. I hope I have as good a result as you all. You helped me decide to go ahead with surgery.

Barb

One thing that I learned having struggled with this since 2003 is that every time you have an attack you loose some of the elasticity in your colon which affects how it functions, I would get several attacks a year for 8 years. I carried the antibiotics with me when ever I traveled and just took them when the symptoms appeared. Knowing what I know now is after the second or third attack I would go for the colon resection. They do it orthoscopically and left the hospital in 3 days.

[emzee]

Barb, I hope all goes well. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery.

[kokosfriend]

Thank you all for sharing. I have had small are of diverticulosis for a few years with no problem. A few weeks ago I became very ill with diarrhea and vomiting. In one day I went from feeling ok to unable to stand or walk. Ambulance to ER and cat scan showed diverticulitis with a small perforation. 4 days of IV antibiotics and 2 weeks of pills I was fine. The in another 2 weeks - back to ER, but not near as bad. I have a week trip coming up and then a colonoscopy and schedule the surgery. I hope I have as good a result as you all. You helped me decide to go ahead with surgery.

Barb

[emzee]

Oh GeoJG, I am in the same club with the stomach problems. I have never had that sort of pain. I couldn't handles much more than I did. I can't imagine every 2-3 days. I am anxious to hear what your doc says so I hope you come back and post ok. I also hope you feel much better soon.

[GeoJG]

Diverticulitis treatment, as mentioned already, is at least Flagyl 500my IV every 8 hours (if you are hospitalized). Pain/nausea control. Dietary measures are conflicting. Used to be avoiding the nuts, seedy stuff, high roughage. Then it went just the opposite. Now it is up to each doctor really. Bowel problems run in my family. My niece and a cousin have Crohn's, a nephew with inflammatory bowel disease, I've been lumped in the IBS pile. Both parents had diverticulosis with flare-ups and my Dad had the c. diff infection that I thought would never go away. I see a new GI doc next month as I'm having horrible attacks every 2-3 days despite medication.

[Gjac]

emzee wrote:
Gjac, I just had an awful time with cramping and the worst pain I could imagine. It happened every morning for about 7 hours. I let it happen the second day and had to go to the doc. She prescribed the 500 mg of Cipro and Flagyl. Took them for 7 days. The 3rd dose helped the pain. I up until now wasn't sure what the pain was as I have been diagnosed with gastritis and diverticulitis. She did no blood work because I just got a knee replacement 9 weeks ago and felt I had been through enough, She said that the antibiotics will get rid of anything. I have never had this sort of horrible pain before.

I have been off
of them for a week and still have a metallic taste in my mouth among other thing.

It can be very painful when the infection goes away the pain subsides. These antibiotics also have side effects they also soften you joint cartilage. I found this out the hard way after I tore my rotator cuffs while taking these antibiotics.

[emzee]

Gjac, I just had an awful time with cramping and the worst pain I could imagine. It happened every morning for about 7 hours. I let it happen the second day and had to go to the doc. She prescribed the 500 mg of Cipro and Flagyl. Took them for 7 days. The 3rd dose helped the pain. I up until now wasn't sure what the pain was as I have been diagnosed with gastritis and diverticulitis. She did no blood work because I just got a knee replacement 9 weeks ago and felt I had been through enough, She said that the antibiotics will get rid of anything. I have never had this sort of horrible pain before.

I have been off
of them for a week and still have a metallic taste in my mouth among other thing.

[Gjac]

I think 50% of folks over 60 have diverticulitis which are pockets in the colon. When food gets trapped in the pockets and it get infected it turns into the "itis " accompanied with fever and chills meaning infection. Cipro and Flagel(antibiotics) are usually prescribed to treat the infection. My first attack was in 2003 and have had at least one a year until 2009 when I had 18 ins of my colon removed. All was well until last week and had another attack. According to my Dr what ever the underlying things that cause the pockets in the first place are still there and it can occur again over time. I have been taking fiber supplements once a day for 15 years. Most Drs now say anything can get trapped in the pockets not just seeds or nuts. I don't want to go through another colon resection.

[rexlion]

Docs usually emphasize the importance of eating plenty of fiber, to help sweep things through the intestine. It isn't foolproof, one can still get some stuff festering in a pouch, but the fiber can't hurt and could help. Other than that, like they say, surgery is the fix. My wife had 1/3 of her colon removed in 2008 and it ended years of agony, but now she has to stay close to a bathroom. Stuff moves through her much faster and she never knows if it's gas or worse until she sits on the throne... can't take the chance.

[NashTT]

I had 10 inches of my colon removed in 2000 due to this. Woke up at 2am in pain and throwing up, looked so bad the DW took me to the ER. Had never had symptoms other than diarrhea which was attributed to lactose intolerance. After the surgery and about 5 weeks recovery I felt fine. I was given a booklet listing all the things not to eat. Four years ago had a checkup and colonoscopy and the Dr. Informed me that the "protocols" for treatment had changed and to go ahead and eat pretty much whatever I wanted in moderation and I'm still doing fine.