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1704915 tn?1357601254

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?

49 Responses
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1704915 tn?1357601254
well I saw the urogynocologist and she believes the rectocele is not the blame for all my digestive issues. She believes its not even serious enough to have surgery on and that unless it gets worse I am just to leave it as is. My next step is getting a glucose hydrogen breath test to see if I have a fructose malabsorption due to the slight change I am seeing now that I am reducing sugars and white flour in my diet.
Helpful - 0
1704915 tn?1357601254
Someone has too.. cause these doctors sure aren't ha ha

May 9th.. just around the corner.. fingers crossed!
Helpful - 0
1128665 tn?1269273471
I'm glad you are looking at all of the factors in play!
Sher
Helpful - 0
1704915 tn?1357601254
That’s interesting cause I am actually prescribed the Nystatin Cream. I have it incase I need it because I am allergic to Vagisil and Monistat. I am going to have a serious talk with the urogynocologist about all of this as well as my birth control. If that is causing a lot of my issues as well (which all the doctors swear its not).. then it my be time to make a decision about alternate methods of birth control with my husband. He has already agreed to do a vasectomy if needed as we both don’t want children.
Helpful - 0
1128665 tn?1269273471
My son was on Nystatin antifungal rx (still takes them at 24). Dr. Semon's theory is autism, Tourettes, ADHD, and MS are all tied to yeast concerns. At it's base it makes sense that as a society we have shifted to eating more processed foods, our bodies react.

And you are right to shift in baby steps, sometimes taking this kind of shift on full bore all at once makes it un-doable and we fall off the wagon.

The Nystatin/diet worked great for my son-the only time he has flares is when he is hugely stressed.

Sher
Helpful - 0
1704915 tn?1357601254
Wow!! I am definitely gonna read more into it. I have been doing a lot more research as well on reducing the yeast and sugars in my diet. I am making small gradual changes right now. Baby steps.. but I am definitely making changes for sure. I also picked up Azo Yeast Pills to starting taking once a day with my other vitamins (I take a multi with probiotics and a digestive enzyme).

Did this work well for your son?

Sometimes I feel like I have ADHD or something of that nature. I get so off focus sometimes.. and my husband says I stress myself out.. but I can't help it. It's like my mind wonders from one thing to the next thing. And then lately for like the last year I say the wrong words.. like yesterday I was like.. "my sweater matches my coat" and my husband was like "did you mean your purse?" and I did.. I was looking right at it and still the word coat came out.
Helpful - 0
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