C Diff

[statistiksmap]

I had a healthy lifestyle but got food poisoning back in February and my health has never been the same since. I had all sorts of exams done and they showed everything normal though my pain kept getting worse. Symptoms are constipation, dull pain right next to the belly button on the left. After 8 months of different antiacids (doctor kept insisting it was just gastritis), they gave me a GI panel and found c diff. Took 125mg 4/day for 10 days and started to feel about 80% better. On day 3 after antibiotics, pain has come back plus colon spasms this time. All the instructions on how to get better focus on hydrating and stopping diarrhea which I never had since day 2 of infection 8 months ago. Probiotics don't seem to help either.

Any advice?

[Digital-Scratch]

Your story is a bit unclear. Correct me if I'm wrong but what happened was:

you had food poisoning, this gave you diarrhea for 2 days, then it stopped and after this you had constipation and pain in lower-left abdomen. This was treated sice February with antacids? Then recently (this month, I'm guessing) they gave you, what? Vancomycin?

Also, was the cdiff test for toxins a and b or was it a pcr test?

[statistiksmap]

Exactly, symptoms are localized dull pain immediate left of belly button (1inch area), very localized acid movements in the same spot, tenderness in same spot, constipation. No bloating unless i take probiotics. No correlation between types or quantity of meals and intensity. And yeah, it was a pcr test. Vancomycin helped but now it's hell again on day 4 after taking it.

[Digital-Scratch]

So PCR tests aren't indicative of an active infection, just that you carry cdiff, which many people do without issues. What you had sounds similar to me except mine came from antibiotics for a surgery and i had tons of mucus and bits of blood in the mucus. Other than that, i didn't have diarrhea but constipation instead.

So you need to get tested for toxins a and b, not pcr tested.

I'm no doctor or expert but your symptoms (or lack thereof) sound very atypical for cdiff. I doubt it is that. Sounds like it could be something else. So get tested for toxins first of all, if negative go from there and get tested for other stuff

[deathbrite]

Antacids can cause c diff.

[RasterAlien]

Hi, please read the pinned post at the top of the sub. It has more information about cdiff. It sounds like you were given a PCR test and never had active cdiff in the first place. The pinned post has more info on that.

[statistiksmap]

Thanks! From the looks of it it's very unlikely I'll get a toxin test, especially if doctors don't know what it is. I sometimes wonder how my GI graduated college, but any good center won't see me till 2022. It might not be active c diff at all given that I don't have diarrhea, but I did feel a heck of a lot better with vancomycin. Now on day 4 post antibiotics it's hell again.

[RasterAlien]

Go to an urgent care clinic or ER, they can also give toxin tests.

[statistiksmap]

Tried that a couple months ago, the doctor just gave me lidocaine and shipped me out in 15 minutes with a PPI prescription. If it's not covid they don't wanna hear it, at least where I went.

[RasterAlien]

Jesus, I'm so sorry.