posted
Anyone know if there are any alternatives to colonscopies?
If you hwd unformed stools for two years would you get one?
I got one back when my parasite started and it found nothing but I'm a bit concerned what a new one might show. Wondering if there is worthwhile alternatives or if you think it's worth getting another one?
Thanks
Posts: 135 | From USA | Registered: Jun 2014
| IP: Logged |
TF
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 14183
posted
Colonoscopies are not used to find parasites. Also, once you have had a colonoscopy and it was totally normal, you generally don't need to get another one for 10 years.
Here is a description of the illnesses that can be diagnosed by colonoscopy:
"A colonoscopy helps find ulcers, colon polyps, tumors, and areas of inflammation or bleeding. During a colonoscopy, tissue samples can be collected (biopsy) and abnormal growths can be taken out. Colonoscopy can also be used as a screening test to check for cancer or precancerous growths in the colon or rectum (polyps)."
So, as you can see, colonoscopies are used if you think there is some abnormal condition of the tissue of the colon itself.
It takes at least 7 years for a cancer to grow in the colon, so if you had no signs of it last time, you don't need to be checked for that for another 7 to 10 years.
There are many other tests for other types of problems. It all depends on what your problem is which test you should have performed.
Stool samples are used for things like parasites. In a few years, they will also be able to detect colon cancer from a stool sample. They will look for the DNA of cancer cells in your stool.
You can be tested for various other problems like lactose intolerance, inability to digest sugar, etc. through other types of out-patient testing.
It wasn't until I got to a great gastro that I was tested for these food-related problems. That's when my long-standing gastro problems were finally diagnosed.
Other gastros didn't want to get into food allergy testing or food intolerances. There is no money in it for them. They make their money on the upper and lower gi, the endoscopy, colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy--since they perform these procedures.
Food intolerance tests are very simple but give crucial info to the doc who is trying to discover why you have loose stools. In the sugar test, I had to drink a sugar solution and then urinate into a special container for the next 8 hours. (Requires you hang around the hospital all that time.) If the sugar comes out in your urine, that proves that your intestines cannot digest sugar.
The lactose intolerance test involved drinking a lactose drink and then exhaling into a certain machine for a number of hours afterwards. The amount of oxygen in your exhale reveals whether or not you can digest milk sugars.
So, by way of these kinds of tests, you can be told what you cannot digest and how to deal with that situation. Lactose intolerance can cause unformed stool as one of its symptoms. The reaction to the milk or milk product can take many, many hours, making it difficult to link the loose stools in the evening to the milk you drank in the morning.
So, depending on your symptoms, you may benefit from these various tests. If the doctor thinks you could have Crohn's disease, you may need a colonoscopy so they can take samples of your intestinal lining and look for ulcerations. Look up the symptoms of Crohn's and see if that sounds like your symptoms.
It all depends on your symptoms which test you need--colonoscopy or something else.
Posts: 9931 | From Maryland | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
posted
Thanks, I guess part of my concern is of parasites causing cancer since I've been sick for 3+ years but true, they don't knoe about parasites. It was a let down that back when I wasmpassing fluke type stuff the gastro doctor didn't find jack,
There actually is a gastro doctor in NYC who specializes in paraifes - Dr. Connor but he doesn't take my insurance some of his online reviews are pretty bad so seeing him doesn't seem that important to me.
Another gi doctor a while ago said based on some blood tests that I was borderline chrons, the thing is that all this stuff only happened once I got lyme and the parasite symptoms so there is a clear connection that the typical doctor may not see.
I do have a doctor from Arixona I plan to work with who specializes in this stuff she ordered me a diagnostech parasite/gi test and a comprehensive lyme test so maybe I should wait till I do that.
Also that dna stool test can't come soon enough, i hope the mainstream adapts it so we all can get those tests if needed.
Posts: 135 | From USA | Registered: Jun 2014
| IP: Logged |
The Lyme Disease Network is a non-profit organization funded by individual donations. If you would like to support the Network and the LymeNet system of Web services, please send your donations to:
The
Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey 907 Pebble Creek Court,
Pennington,
NJ08534USA http://www.lymenet.org/
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
Printer-friendly view of this topic