Ibs vs Ibd

[Stevi (:]

I really want to know more detail on the differences between Ibs and Ibd. My doctor said you can get inflammation with ibs (I have Chronic Gastritis and its in other areas). What have your doctors said? He said it was my nerves causing pain prescribed me lorazopam( anti anxiety) but it didnt help at all.

 

[theOcean]

Lorazepam is a very mild anti-anxiety medication. Anxiety is an IBD or IBS trigger, so I can see why he would do that, though I don't view that as being very helpful. My GP originally said my stomach problems were just stress, and then I was diagnosed maybe a month later with Crohn's.

We have a forum entry on IBS vs IBD here, if you want to take a look! There's also a chart of comparisons between IBD and IBS here, which is also helpful.

 

[Ihurt]

I was told by my gastro doc that IBS can cause Microscopic inflammation. Usually this inflammation is not visible to the naked eye. But who knows. I really do not think that they know. The doctors go by a list of criteria when it comes to diagnosing diseases. For instance, they say that with IBS you usually have to have at least three or more of the following( diarrheaha, or constipation or both alternating, Feeling relief after a BM, bloating, abdominal pain, heartburn, and gas.) Of course my GI told me that there is a Very wide variable when it comes to symptoms with IBS. Everyone is different and symptom can vary. With IBD, I think they can only diagnose it through a biopsy. That and if they do a scope and see tons of damage, then it is more likely to be IBD, not IBS. If you want my honest opinion, I think they just throw the Diagnosis IBS on all gut disorders until they can find out what the problem is or if it ever surfaces.

 

[nogutsnoglory]

IBS is a functional illness whereas IBD is an actual disease. IBS is often a diagnosis when everything is ruled out and there is no clear indication. IBD on the other hand can be very clear in its manifestation and abnormalities are visible in the gut lining that you won't find with IBS. While many symptoms overlap, the physical damage longterm occurs with IBD.

 

[Lizzie]

I was told that if you pass blood then it must be IBD, blood isn't a symptom of IBS.

 

[Stevi (:]

humpf. Ive have passed blood but my doctor really nudges it off... I tell him everytime i see him haha. I usually see it when I wipe, with mucous, covering my stool, or as drips..but not always, at least like once a week though. Sorry for the graphics lol.

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

It is possible to have blood with a bowel movement with IBS - anal fissures and internal hemorrhoids can both produce bright red blood, usually just a little bit either in the toilet or on the TP. But any bleeding should be checked out by your doctor to ascertain the source. Someone who is passing blood from an unknown cause, that is not something that a doctor should brush off - when I started bleeding last year, they did an exam in the office (finger up the bum) and put me on Cipro in case it was a bacterial infection, and they scheduled a colonoscopy too (in my case, it did turn out to be hemorrhoids as the cause, but I'm glad they were thorough).

Other symptoms besides bleeding that aren't typically part and parcel of IBS are unintentional weight loss, night sweats, fever/chills, and waking up in the night needing the bathroom urgently (I've heard that referred to as "nocturnal diarrhea" which is just a weird phrase to me ). Those symptoms tend to indicate inflammation/infection, rather than "functional illness" like IBS. If you've had any of those symptoms and are still being fobbed off by your doctors, then it's probably time to start looking for new doctors who take you more seriously. I think you said in the other thread that you're seeing a new GI as soon as the referral goes though? So is it your primary care doc who is brushing you off (and losing referrals)? Might be time for a new primary care doc if that's the case.

 

[StarGirrrrl]

Anti anxiety medication is often prescribed in low doses for IBS. Not because the Dr think you are having bad anxiety causing your symptoms or that it's in the mind. But because it has been shown that they can work well on relaxing the guts

I was prescribed this and in the early days of my illness it worked really well, although you have to be patient it can take 4-8 weeks to kick in. Sadly for me it wore off after a couple of years and I no longer take it (they tried with another type which failed, and asked me to go back on the one that worked but at a higher dose and I refused)

Kind of like how Viagra started out as a heart medication.... other benefits were, shall we say, ahem, discovered.

As for IBS v IBD, in my experience unless there is concrete, obvious evidence of IBD it will be labelled as IBS. They labelled mine as IBS despite passing dark blood, inflammation in the blood consitently and always having to get up during the night.

At least I managed to persuade Rheumy to label it "probable IBS" on my medical correspondence now. That's the best i'm going to get.

 

[Stevi (:]

The ativan really made me depressed :/

 

[Kero]

I had no idea night sweats could be attributed to IBD. I wake up at least once every night absolutely soaked in sweat I am also woken up to use the bathroom, anywhere between 3:30 and 5:30 am

 

[Stevi (:]

I used to get night sweats and sometimes still do but when i was little it was bad, i would soak the bed....

 

[theOcean]

I hear taking Levsin can help quite a bit with night sweats.

 

[nogutsnoglory]

I had horrendous night sweats when I had abscesses.

 

[theOcean]

Me too, actually. It was awful. I also got fever dreams just for good measure.

 

[Stevi (:]

And its actually a surgeon who specializes in the alimentary tract whos not taking me seriously I got referred to him instead of a gi for insurance reasons....but hes not figuring it out fast enough at all