reply to post by Fat Azn
Any history of Chrone's disease in your family?
Your doctor is not a lunatic, the problem is, there are secondary complications. For instance, lets say you have HIV (you likely don't, I am just
using this as an example). People with HIV develop AIDS because the virus attacks a type of T lymphocyte called the CD4 cell. The T lymphocyte is like
the General, or the Commander in Chief, of your immune system. Without it, your immune system does not attack anything, because it does not get an
order to attack. Without George Bush, there is no Iraq or Afghanistan war (if you don't mind the analogy). Because there is no immune response- or a
weakened immune response due to reduced CD4 cells- an infection that is normally no big deal can be traumatic. A doctor may diagnose the patient with
the rhinovirus, a common cold, even though the patient has been sick for three weeks with a fever, and the doctor can prescribe antivirals that make
the patient eventually feel better. However, even though that problem is gone, the patient still feels general malaise. That is because even though
the main culprit was dealt with, the immune system is still weak, and other infections that are usually minor can still arise and cause damage.
Likewise, you may have had an anal fissure, you may have a hemorrhoid (and some of these can take months to heal, mind you, and not all of them
stretch past the rectal sphincter), you may have had any number of things. But if those things happened because of- or in ADDITION to- another
infection/genetic problem/anatomical malfunction, then your doctor is not a quack, it is just that one happened alongside the other.
You could have Chrones disease. You could have a very, very severe case of IBS. You could have diverticulitis. You could have a perforation in the
colon that is not healing well due to a clotting disorder. Hell- you could have liver damage, leading to low platelet count, which lead to abnormal
bleeding, which just happened to manifest itself in the GI tract...
Anything is possible...
My suggestion is that you get a COMPLETE family history... find out all of your ethnic background as well (different races have different problems, it
is a fact of genealogy), and go to a different, better known doctor (preferably a specialist, such as a gastrologist) for a second opinion. If you
have an HMO for insurance (or no insurance at all) this may be difficult... if you work for the government/have a PPO, it should be no problem at all.
Either way, take your complete history, and go to a new doctor. He also should have done a biopsy- which you need to get done.
Good luck, and stay away from asprin/Ibuprofen/Naproxen as these are NSAIDs and will make bleeding worse, especially in issues that deal with the
stomach/GI tract. If you are on nitrates, beta blockers, anti-depressants or other medications that can cause or worsen bleeding, also let the doctor
know.