My GP has suggested testing for crohn's / IBD after a couple of yeard of having one infection after another (all of them quite rare). It has taken a really long time for a GP to figure out what the problem might be but at last I have had a significant enough flare for the GP to take it seriously. I am just curious to know how long it takes to get a proper diagnosis?
How long does it take to get a diagnosis?
- Thread starter AliGrylls
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DustyKat
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Hi Ali,
The time taken to receive an accurate diagnosis can vary widely. For those with ‘classic’ symptoms the time can be quite short in the scheme of things, as in weeks. Unfortunately for some with ‘classic’ symptoms and certainly for those with not so obvious presentations the diagnosis can vary between months to years.
We have an Undiagnosed Club which I am sad to say is quite active, sad because it means there are too many out there suffering with no clear and solid answers. Here is the link to the support group:
http://www.crohnsforum.com/showthread.php?t=13113
In our case my daughter was unwell for 18 months - 2 years before finally receiving her diagnosis on the operating table. :eek2: My son on the other hand, no doubt due to my daughter, received his diagnosis within 2 weeks.
The gold standard for a diagnosis of IBD remains biopsy via scope but even this doesn’t always provide the answers people seek. Part of the problem here is key indicators aren’t aways present in the pathology and scoping, both upper and lower, will still leave the vast majority of the small bowel untouched and unseen. Imaging is required to visualise the small bowel.
What symptoms have you been experiencing and did the GP say they thought your problems many be located in the bowel?
Dusty.
The time taken to receive an accurate diagnosis can vary widely. For those with ‘classic’ symptoms the time can be quite short in the scheme of things, as in weeks. Unfortunately for some with ‘classic’ symptoms and certainly for those with not so obvious presentations the diagnosis can vary between months to years.
We have an Undiagnosed Club which I am sad to say is quite active, sad because it means there are too many out there suffering with no clear and solid answers. Here is the link to the support group: http://www.crohnsforum.com/showthread.php?t=13113
In our case my daughter was unwell for 18 months - 2 years before finally receiving her diagnosis on the operating table. :eek2: My son on the other hand, no doubt due to my daughter, received his diagnosis within 2 weeks.
The gold standard for a diagnosis of IBD remains biopsy via scope but even this doesn’t always provide the answers people seek.
Part of the problem here is key indicators aren’t aways present in the pathology and scoping, both upper and lower, will still leave the vast majority of the small bowel untouched and unseen. Imaging is required to visualise the small bowel. What symptoms have you been experiencing and did the GP say they thought your problems many be located in the bowel?
Dusty.
It's definitely not classic. After I had my children I kept on getting vomiting "bugs" (this is what the midwife and A&E told me anyway). This stopped about a year ago and I started having UTI's (strep B) that were really difficult to shift, a skin infection and a 4 kg weight loss over a month.
Since November I have been reasonably well however, I have always been a keen runner but the last month it has been really uncomfortable as I keep on getting really bad burning stomach cramps and diarrhoea.
I saw a different GP to the one I usually see and she queried whether I had IBD and asked me about the previous episodes. Now I am reading a little it kind of makes sense but I am just dreading going through the NHS again to be told it isn't IBD and that there is nothing wrong with me (again). As you can tell I have been to my GP a lot in the past couple of years.
Since November I have been reasonably well however, I have always been a keen runner but the last month it has been really uncomfortable as I keep on getting really bad burning stomach cramps and diarrhoea.
I saw a different GP to the one I usually see and she queried whether I had IBD and asked me about the previous episodes. Now I am reading a little it kind of makes sense but I am just dreading going through the NHS again to be told it isn't IBD and that there is nothing wrong with me (again). As you can tell I have been to my GP a lot in the past couple of years.
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Hi Ali. Its a bit like the saying 'how long is a piece of string'
I was 2/3yrs of varying symptoms till i got really very ill, and had a ct scan which found the crohns. Some folks are dxd in weeks/months some upto 10yrs b4 they are, though that is probably quite rare. The more you push for dx /answers the quicker it should be. Best wishes n good luck on a quick diaganosis...
I was 2/3yrs of varying symptoms till i got really very ill, and had a ct scan which found the crohns. Some folks are dxd in weeks/months some upto 10yrs b4 they are, though that is probably quite rare. The more you push for dx /answers the quicker it should be. Best wishes n good luck on a quick diaganosis...
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