Hello doctor, One month ago, I had bloody diarrhea, fever, and fatigue. Doctor tested stool for bacteria but found nothing. Bloody diarrhea and diarrhea eventually went away. I am feeling a lot better now. However, some symptoms concern me. My stomach and intestines keep making gurgling and growling noises. They are more noticeable at night when I sleep. They also occur before I have a bowel movement sometimes. I sometimes notice small amounts of blood and mucus in my stool. Blood is present in small quantities, not as much as when I had bloody diarrhea. Blood is on and off. Mucus is present in small amounts as well. My stool also does not look quite normal. There are undigested food particles in my stool, and I normally do not have that. Sometimes it is green or greenish-yellow. No other symptoms are present. Appetite and weight are good and no fatigue. Would blood and mucus in stool signify Crohn's or ulcerative colitis especially with the bowel noises? I am under age 30, so I don't feel at risk for cancer or polyps. What do you think I most likely have?
Hello. See following an infection of Intestine (that is what you had initially), and there occurs some damage to the digestive and absorptive capacity of the Intestine. This leads to indigestion and malabsorption of food that you consume. But the presence of blood is of bit concern. It may indicate either a repeat Infection or Crohn's or Ulcerative colitis. However, there will be a long duration of the problem in Crohn's or Ulcerative colitis, and they will be associated with pain abdomen rather than gurgling and growling noises. In my opinion, the chances of Infection is higher than Crohn's or ulcerative colitis. I would recommend you to get stool routine and stool culture sensitivity test done and revert with reports. These test will tell if there is an infection or not. I hope this information was useful for you. Any clarifications feel free to ask.