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constipation, tortuous abnormally long colon, slow transit and anterior rectocele
I am 30 years old and have been suffering with GI problems for the last 6 years. They consists of terrible gas stomach aches, bloating (to the point I dont fit in my clothes and look pregnant), girggling/trapped air in my chest, chest pains and the worst of them all.. severe constipation (don't go for 2 weeks and when I do its rock hard and barely anything). I have seen 4 different doctors getting various opinions that range from a regular dr who put me on Amitiza low dose and when that didnt work recommended me to see a gi dr. That GI dr told me "oh its just IBS..nothing we can do for you." Then I went to the city to see a dr at a well known university hospital and they ran a million and one tests on me...........
1.) Sigmoidoscopy Result = hemmrhoids internal due to straining, some irritation and redness but biopsies say no cancer
2.) Upper scope = some irritation and redness but biopsies say no cancer
3.) Mannometry = lower esophagus is weak causing the trapped air and pains (taking Aciphex and Gas X for this, avoiding gas causing/acid causing foods)
4.) Empty Stomach Study = stomach is emptying in a normal range
5.) Physical Therapy for pelvic floor dysfunction = not the cause of constipation. When this did not work I begged my gi dr to do a colonoscopy to set my mind at ease.
6.) Colonoscopy = they found I have a very long and very torturous colon.. my GI dr was not able to complete the whole thing.. she got to my ascending colon and had to stop. She says surgery is not needed unless there was a knot or blockage (pretty much on my death bed) but this definitely is why I am experiencing gas, upset stomach and bloating. I begged her to give me something for some relief now that she knew this was the cause. She took me off of Miralax and put me on a high dose of Amitiza. This time I didnt stop taking it because it didnt do anything but because it made me VERY sick. I missed more work because the side effects made me feel as though I had the flu (aches, pains, chills, hot flashes, headaches). I took it as instructed with a meal to not get nauseated which does help... but when ever I finally have a BM I become nauseated before, during and after. I still didn't go to the bathroom for a week or two so the side effects were not worth the results. I was then taken off of of it and put back on Miralax.
7.) Barium enema xray = because my colon is so long and loopy they had to fill me up with 3 bags of barium instead of 1 and had to flip me upside down for quite a long time to even get the test going. The results showed the same thing as the colonoscopy. Longest 2 hours of my life. Worse procedure EVER!
At this point the GI dr told me there was really nothing they could do for me but continue running more tests to eliminate other things. She continued to tell me that surgery was not an option even though my colon was so long, loopy and making my life miserable. I took it upon myself at this point to see the colon surgeon to see what he had to tell me etc as I kept reading and hearing about colectomy surgeries. The surgeon looked over all my files from all my various drs....
8.) Sitz Marker Xray = I have colonic inertia. My stomach and small intestine are working but my large intestine is not. I actually went to a colon surgeon after not getting any treatments answers from my GI dr.
The colon surgeon called and spoke with my GI dr whom I was trying not to go back to as I was done with getting no answers from her. He gave me the option to see a constipation specialist that she recommended at the hospital I had all the tests done at. The colon specialist told me I needed to have 2 procedures done to make sure my rectum and everything else was functioning before proceeding with surgery on my colon.
9.) anal manometry = pretty normal results. A little loss in sensitivity but nothing to be alarmed about
10.) barium defecography = shows that I have anterior rectocele which is causing a blockage
My GI dr/constipation specialist now want me to see another surgeon that they highly recommend that specialists in anterior rectoceles.
My question is .. is there anyone else out there that is experiencing anything similiar to what I am (constipation, tortuous abnormally long colon, slow transit and anterior rectocele)???
Has anyone seen a surgeon or had surgery to repair a anterior rectocele? What was the results?
1.) Sigmoidoscopy Result = hemmrhoids internal due to straining, some irritation and redness but biopsies say no cancer
2.) Upper scope = some irritation and redness but biopsies say no cancer
3.) Mannometry = lower esophagus is weak causing the trapped air and pains (taking Aciphex and Gas X for this, avoiding gas causing/acid causing foods)
4.) Empty Stomach Study = stomach is emptying in a normal range
5.) Physical Therapy for pelvic floor dysfunction = not the cause of constipation. When this did not work I begged my gi dr to do a colonoscopy to set my mind at ease.
6.) Colonoscopy = they found I have a very long and very torturous colon.. my GI dr was not able to complete the whole thing.. she got to my ascending colon and had to stop. She says surgery is not needed unless there was a knot or blockage (pretty much on my death bed) but this definitely is why I am experiencing gas, upset stomach and bloating. I begged her to give me something for some relief now that she knew this was the cause. She took me off of Miralax and put me on a high dose of Amitiza. This time I didnt stop taking it because it didnt do anything but because it made me VERY sick. I missed more work because the side effects made me feel as though I had the flu (aches, pains, chills, hot flashes, headaches). I took it as instructed with a meal to not get nauseated which does help... but when ever I finally have a BM I become nauseated before, during and after. I still didn't go to the bathroom for a week or two so the side effects were not worth the results. I was then taken off of of it and put back on Miralax.
7.) Barium enema xray = because my colon is so long and loopy they had to fill me up with 3 bags of barium instead of 1 and had to flip me upside down for quite a long time to even get the test going. The results showed the same thing as the colonoscopy. Longest 2 hours of my life. Worse procedure EVER!
At this point the GI dr told me there was really nothing they could do for me but continue running more tests to eliminate other things. She continued to tell me that surgery was not an option even though my colon was so long, loopy and making my life miserable. I took it upon myself at this point to see the colon surgeon to see what he had to tell me etc as I kept reading and hearing about colectomy surgeries. The surgeon looked over all my files from all my various drs....
8.) Sitz Marker Xray = I have colonic inertia. My stomach and small intestine are working but my large intestine is not. I actually went to a colon surgeon after not getting any treatments answers from my GI dr.
The colon surgeon called and spoke with my GI dr whom I was trying not to go back to as I was done with getting no answers from her. He gave me the option to see a constipation specialist that she recommended at the hospital I had all the tests done at. The colon specialist told me I needed to have 2 procedures done to make sure my rectum and everything else was functioning before proceeding with surgery on my colon.
9.) anal manometry = pretty normal results. A little loss in sensitivity but nothing to be alarmed about
10.) barium defecography = shows that I have anterior rectocele which is causing a blockage
My GI dr/constipation specialist now want me to see another surgeon that they highly recommend that specialists in anterior rectoceles.
My question is .. is there anyone else out there that is experiencing anything similiar to what I am (constipation, tortuous abnormally long colon, slow transit and anterior rectocele)???
Has anyone seen a surgeon or had surgery to repair a anterior rectocele? What was the results?
Thank you for all of this info.
I got my paper copy of my results in today to take with me to my next appt
They say.... 4x3 cm anterior rectocele which does not completely empty Excessive pelvic floor descent with evacuation and extrinsic compression of proximal rectum..possibly to an enterocele
Does that make sense to you???
My concern is did this cause the issues with my colon or was it the other way around?? Also is it possible for my colon to shrink down again once this is fixed or will I also need acolon resectioning on top of it to prevent getting this again?? :(
I got my paper copy of my results in today to take with me to my next appt
They say.... 4x3 cm anterior rectocele which does not completely empty Excessive pelvic floor descent with evacuation and extrinsic compression of proximal rectum..possibly to an enterocele
Does that make sense to you???
My concern is did this cause the issues with my colon or was it the other way around?? Also is it possible for my colon to shrink down again once this is fixed or will I also need acolon resectioning on top of it to prevent getting this again?? :(
Yes, rectocele and enterocele often go together. This is classic POP scenario with rectocele. I don't think either caused the other to occur, your colon was probably always the size it is and when the rectocele occured, the issues cropped up. The colon will not shrink, discuss with your urygyn if that needs to be addressed or if the rectocele repair will allow your colon to return to normal function. The long colon did not cause the rectocele. Most women have multiple causes of POP, vaginal childbirth is the leading cause, chronic constipation is both a cause and symptom. Multiple other causes, heavy lifting, running/jogging, genetics, chronic coughing.
Sher
Sher
I will definitely bring this up to her. I just was wondering if I had a slow transit/long colon etc that cause the constipation.. and cause me to strain.. that maybe that in turn caused the retrocele etc. My specialist seems to think the opposite. He thinks the retrocele is causing me to get backed up which in turn has cause my colon to stretch out etc.
Again thank you so much for your help!! You have been a god sent!
Again thank you so much for your help!! You have been a god sent!
Not typically off of work unless you have surgery because this is then an on-going condition. Women usually figure out what works to help them have comfort/function at work, support garments at work and utilizing treatments to balance POP better.
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