Biopsy help - endoscopy & colonoscopy

[Hannahmb93]

Morning. Had endoscopy + colonoscopy Wednesday. I was told bowel looked normal but they went on to take a total of 20 biopsies! 8 from endoscopy 12 from bowel. Is this excessive? I was under the influence it would be a couple of biopsies not that many! Also – bit worried it’s going to come back as ibs. I’ve been ill for over 10 years and the last year I lost 2 stone in a matter of weeks could barely eat crippled in pain never known anything like it. I get bloody mucus sometimes unreliable bowel movements. Whilst I’m pleased they didn’t see anything sinister (massive relief) I am concerned they will just diagnose ibs and I will be left to get on with it!! How many biopsies did you have? They suspected UC but clearly no signs on the day

[EOLHPC]

Hello hannah...i hope they diagnose you promptly. You’ve been through a lot

I’m kind of like you: a lifetime of 24/7 mouth to exit GI tract signs & symptoms which have been progressively debilitating...managed mainly by self help & first line treatments including a forever Low FODMAP exclusion diet. I never suspected IBD cause my husband & his sister have severe early onset Crohns & i have friends with Colitis...and my case seemed nothing compared to theirs

I regularly attend a world famous university hospital due to simultaneous early onset primary immune dysfunction & connective tissue disorder conditions H(Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos + infant onset systemic lupus + antibody deficiency disease) and 5 years ago manifestations in my abdomen got so bad that multidiscipline investigations began into why my condition had becone so severe - gastroscopy, colonoscopy, barium swallow...all of which, like yours, found nothing...but going through all that also aggravated my condition...so that eventually i could barely tolerate even the most low residue foods, and eventually couldn’t keep anything down at all....of course i lost a lot of weight

While more investigations continued (video capsule endoscopy MRI Enterography etc) gastroenterology put onto Crohns care protocol prescription EEN, ie Exclusive Enteral Nutrition (not Sip Feed Nutrition like Ensure, Complan etc) which consists of predigested amino acids so the small intestine gets complete rest from digesting anything.

Finally gastroenterology + rheumatology + immunology agreed i have some sort of unusual Crohns-like immunodeficiency/autoimmunity-related inflammatory bowel enteropathy. My lupus + my immunodeficiency meds + the EEN are helping a lot & i am being monitored closely

So, hang on in there: there are other unusual forms of IBD that seldom get mentioned publically, but which can be helped by similar protocols to more well known IBDs

I’ve never had that many biopsies, but sometimes i wish i had...cause in order to pin down which type of enteropathy i have, there’ll have to be another big session at endoscopy clinic...and i’ve become allergic to bowel prep!

Good luck, Coco

[Valbaty54]

I had 12 biopsies taken during my last colonoscopy from 4 different areas and I don't think it's that unusual. They tend to focus on sections that look inflamed, if any, otherwise just a selection of places. I hope you get a diagnosis soon!

[elwins]

After having a colonoscopy done a few years back and samples taken, mine turned out to be colitis which I control by diet. Have to watch my wheat intake. It might just be that you have certain food allergies, have you tried keeping a food diary to see what happens when you eat certain foods. Best of luck.

[Hannahmb93]

Thank you for your replies. Was just confused how the discharge report said everything looked normal yet the couple of biopsies turned into loads! Actually hoping it’s something they can Medicate me for as this ‘ibs’ is ruling my life. The pain, the sickness and now not even being able to wear clothes that touch my belly - it’s all getting a bit much