Chronic Diarrhea Treatment Specialist in Kingwood, TX

Diarrhea is known as a digestive condition that causes loose or watery stool to occur. Many have diarrhea at some point in their life. While these times are often acute, they resolve within a matter of days without any extended complications. Others, however, live with persistent diarrhea that lasts on average two to four weeks. This is what is known as chronic diarrhea.

Chronic diarrhea, which is loose, watery stool that is left untreated, can lead to severe issues. You will know if you have chronic diarrhea if you show a few symptoms, the first being the most obvious, which is loose, watery stool that persists for more than a week. Chronic diarrhea may or may not be accompanied by a sense of urgency, but other symptoms include bloating, abdominal cramping, and nausea. All of these symptoms will last longer than a week or two.

Chronic diarrhea’s main cause is due to underlying medical conditions. Inflammatory conditions are a common cause of chronic diarrhea, including Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. These inflammatory conditions often cause abdominal pain and bloody stools.

Your physician will take a stool sample to examine the feces to reveal any elevated white blood cells. This can be a sign of inflammation within the body or parasites or bacteria within the stool. Parasites in the body can also cause loose stools. Another cause could be your diet. Certain ingredients that may be included in your diet can speed up the rate of digestion, which causes the food to pass rapidly through the colon. Common culprits of chronic diarrhea include artificial sweeteners and milk. Finally, the last other causes of chronic diarrhea may include medications like NSAIDs, antacids, antibiotics, diabetes, alcohol abuse, and gluten insensitivities.

If the stool sample or blood test cannot identify the cause of chronic diarrhea, the doctor may suggest a CT scan of the abdomen or an ultrasound. A colonoscopy may be suggested to examine the bowels for any abnormalities. This tool can diagnose issues with the lining of the intestines, colon, and pancreas.

You should seek medical attention if you are noticing you are having consistent loose and/or watery stool that lasts for more than three to four weeks. Depending on the severity of your diarrhea, you may need to contact us sooner if you notice any of these “alarm symptoms,” which include:

● Fever
● Dehydration
● Weight loss
● Abdominal pain
● Bloody diarrhea

A gastrointestinal doctor will first start with a physical exam, they may also recommend completing a blood test and providing a stool sample, so they can look for any infections or signs of inflammation. Stool samples are able to provide more information to the gastrointestinal doctor on whether you are experiencing:

• Ulcerative colitis
• Crohn’s disease
• Pancreatitis
• Maldigestion
• Gastrointestinal bleeding
• Fungal, bacterial, and parasitic infections

As well as other factors that can lead to chronic diarrhea, which include:

• Medications (like laxatives or antacids)
• Gluten intolerance
• Celiac disease
• Heavy alcohol consumption
• Certain chronic conditions
• Pre-existing conditions

Other causes of chronic diarrhea may include:

• Immune dysfunction
• Hereditary disorders (including cystic fibrosis)
• Past surgeries of your digestive tract
• Tumors

However, if the blood or stool sample does not provide more insight into why the patient is experiencing chronic diarrhea, then the gastrointestinal doctor may recommend a colonoscopy to check for any inflammation or bleeding that can occur within the digestive tract.

From there, if nothing else is revealed once more, it may be possible that the chronic diarrhea the patient is experiencing is caused by irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and unfortunately, at this point in time, there is no cure for IBS. There are simple lifestyle changes that the patient can make to their diet that can help in reducing any pain, and bloating.

A gastrointestinal doctor is a specialist to see if you are dealing with chronic diarrhea, abdominal pain, severe bloating, vomiting, and nausea. Chronic diarrhea can be quite frustrating to deal with, but our clinic is able to provide the answers you may be looking for and provide treatment to help. For more information, contact us or visit us online. Our clinic is conveniently located at 2601 W Lake Houston Pkwy Kingwood, TX. We serve patients from Kingwood TX, Huffman TX, Atascocita TX, Humble TX, Porter TX, New Caney TX, Houston TX, Crosby TX, Dayton TX, Mont Belvieu TX and Spring TX.