flare without diarrhea?

[momsa]

Do some people experience flares by getting a fever but no diarrhea?
For someone with Crohn's restricted to the colon, is it possible that a fever is the main symptom of a flare? Softer poop, but certainly not diarrhea or blood.
No congestion or sore throat, and it's not flu or covid. CRP is high, though.

 

[Scipio]

Back before Stelara put me in remission, I used to get flares with fever but no diarrhea. The "no diarrhea" type of Crohn's tends to be far more common in Crohn's confined to the small bowel rather than to the large bowel. But with Crohn's there are always exceptions to every rule.

 

[momsa]

Thank you for your response. The more general topic is how do you distinguish a flare from just being sick from a "bug"? We're new to this, so we appreciate all info.

 

[Scipio]

I guess you can distinguish them by what makes them go away. I had unexplained fevers for years prior to being diagnosed with Crohn's. I thought they were random infections of one sort or another - never bad enough to send me to the doctor. Aspirin or tylenol kept the fevers in check, and they always went away on their own after a few days.

Fast forward 10 years and I got diagnosed with Crohn's due to severe anemia, not the fevers. I eventually got put on Stelara to control the Crohn's. Once the Crohn's was in remission the fevers were abolished. I haven't had one for years - since the day I started Stelara.

If, on the other hand, treating infections and not the Crohn's biologic had made the fevers go away, I would have concluded the fevers were due to infections. But as it is, I'm blaming the fevers on Crohn's.

 

[momsa]

Nice of you to respond. We are still trying to figure out whether the Entyvio is working (Stelara didn't bring him to remission), so I guess the jury is still out on this fever he had. Colonoscopy scheduled in January.