Diagnosed Diverticulitis, Explosive Diarrhea, Cramps, Blood And Mucus

Posted on Mon, 16 May 2011

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Mon, 16 May 2011 Answered on

Mon, 21 May 2012 Last reviewed on

Question : I ate and drank a lot last night. In the morning I had some cramping and explosive diarrhea. I also drank coffee on an empty stomach after the diarrhea episode. A few hour latter I had blood and mucus in my stool. I am only getting a little light cramping once in a while in the lower part of my abdomen now . I have been diagnosed with diverticulitis. That was extremely painful when that happened, but obviously now I'm worried. What should I do?

Answered by Dr. Tulasi Raman.P (41 minutes later)

Hi XXXXXXX

Thanks for the query.

As you have already been diagnosed with diverticulitis I feel that this could be the same, because of your symptoms of initial diarrhea followed by blood and mucus in stool, associated with cramping abdominal pain which is typical of diverticulitis.

It has a recurrence rate of 3% per year. So this could probably be the condition.

I suggest you consult your doctor who had earlier diagnosed diverticulitis in you. You will need a complete evaluation as done the previous time which includes USG abdomen, Barium studies, Sigmoidoscopy in addition to the routine blood and urine tests.

I hope my answer has been adequate and informative. If you have any follow up queries I will be available to answer them.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Tulasi Raman.P (19 minutes later)

The thing is that I don't have any pain like I did the previous time. It was just the one episode with the diarrhea when I felt any pain or cramping. I don't feel sick and have no pain I'm just worried about the stool and slight crampy feeling once in a while. It is not just the one area that was acutely showing problems the last time. It is just the lower part en total. Should I contact my doctor tomorrow?

Answered by Dr. Tulasi Raman.P (12 hours later)

Hi XXXXXXX

Thanks for writing back to me.

As you previously had Diverticulitis and the symptoms were almost the similar I had to suspect the same. It could also be due to other things like dysentery etc but I can't tell anything more than this. Because I have to examine you get few tests done and couple of imaging studies.

So it's better to consult a doctor, get a physical examination and follow his advice.

Wish You Good Health and speedy recovery.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar