Hi Waijd. As you ca see from the article, an H.pylori infection is not the only possible cause of your symptoms. It could vary from nasal congestion which causes excessive air swallowing to conditions like gastroparesis. You may want to follow up with the gastroenterologist you were seeing. Excessive belching can be a vague symptom at times and there are so many possible causes that have to be investigated and excluded before a final diagnosis can be reached.

Hi Reeths. It is very important that you consult with your doctor again given your history of a Mallory-Weiss tear which can be a serious condition. The belching may occur for a number of reasons but it would not be advisable to try to self-diagnose or treat it on your own. Mucus in the stools is unlikely due to GERD. While GERD can cause mucus in the throat, mucus in the stools are more likely to be associated with hemorrhoids, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or some other disease. Your doctor will be able to advise you further.

Hi Sean. These symptoms are worrisome especially since none of the investigations conducted thus far has not revealed any abnormality. Conditions like IBD (inflammatory bowel disease) and even gastrointestinal cancer come to mine given the host of digestive symptoms along with the mucus and bleeding. There could be other conditions that may be responsible as well but it is difficult to say with any degree of certainty. Your GI doc is probably correct in repeating these tests. The underlying problem could have missed the first time.

Without knowing the cause there is no way of saying for sure whether this will be a lifelong condition. While some of these symptoms could also be attributed to IBS (if no other condition can be diagnosed) it is important to first exclude more serious pathology. It is possible that you are experiencing more than one condition simultaneously, like acid reflux and gastritis in the upper gut and hermorrhoids in the lower gut. If the second battery of tests come back clear and your GI doc still cannot provide any ideas, then you should get a second opinion from another GI doc.

This has been going on for 6 months and it is to the point where work is very very hard to do. I’ve had an abdomen ultrasound: nothing found. Ive had an endoscopy and colonoscopy, both only revealed signs of acid reflux. I then had an Upper GI and small bowel follow through: also revealed nothing. Stool test also revealed nothing except blood and mucous.

My GI doc doesn’t know. He is starting to repeat tests and I’m a little worried I may have to live with this forever.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Mike, Your condition does appear to be quite complicated. The colonoscopy (I assume that you made a mistake when you mentioned colostomy) is very necessary in your case, given the symptoms that list.

If the diarrhea only started after the colon cleanse prior to the colonoscopy, then you may need to consider probiotics, particularly those containing Saccharomyces boulardii and Lactobacilli. Remember not all probiotics are the same, and you will be looking for those brands containing these two organisms specifically.

It can help greatly with conditions where the normal bowel bacteria have been disturbed. Persistent diarrhea due to other causes can also mess up your bowel bacteria thereby leading to ongoing diarrhea, even after the initial cause resolves.

It would most definitely be advisable for you to consult with a gastroenterologist for your digestive system. Remember that Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and adrenal insufficiency can be effectively managed, so there is no need to “throw in the towel” at this point. Good luck!