Diagnosed With Ischemic Colitis. On Clear Diet. Bowel Movements With Cramping. Prescribed With Flagyl, Prilosec.

Posted on Wed, 16 May 2012

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

Wed, 16 May 2012 Answered on

Tue, 10 Jul 2012 Last reviewed on

Question : diagnosed with eschemic colitis. on iv for 2 days, clear liquid diet for 4 days, given 2 enemas before colonoscopy, endo and ct done as well. 1st day of full liquid diet. had 3/4 cup coffee with creamer . had 2 large bowel movements with mild cramping. felt like i was going to have a 3rd, but got up to take a walk and feeling subsided. where is all this stool coming from with no food ? no blood or blood in stool, which drove me to hospital in 1st place. no insurance, in florida, drs very expensive. trying to quit or reduce smoking. am i getting better or ??i am taking as prescribed flagyl, and prilosec.

Answered by Dr. Ketan Vagholkar (35 minutes later)

Hi,
Thanks for writing in.
Whatever liquid diet you are taking along with old residue in the intestine is being passed off. You don’t need to worry about this.
Absence of blood in the stools at present is a good sign. Presence of blood in the stools signifies an ongoing ischaemic process.
If the severity of symptoms has gone down that is there is a decrease in abdominal pain, decrease in abdominal distension and passage of normal colored stools irrespective of the volume , then you are definitely recovering. This can also be confirmed when the WBC ( white blood cell or total leukocyte count) count would normalize and the abdominal ultrasound and abdominal Xray become normal.
Resort to small multiple liquid feeds as that will reduce the load on the intestine.
With Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Aparna Kohli