Hi all! I am new here. And worried. I have been suffering with right hand side pain lower tummy since October. Started with what seemed like gastroenteritis and lasted for about a month, no blood in stool at the beginning. Then the enteritis stopped and got what I thought is constipation as very hard to pass and pebble like. During all this time there was a constant (and still is) pain just right side of belly button and it seems to me that it is swollen and hard at times. Gurgling and fermentation feeling also in the same area. It’s like there’s a localised activity in that spot. A CT scan at A&E when all this started ruled out appendicitis. Calprotectin 98.I am down for colonoscopy this week which hopefully will give me some answers.
I was wondering whether anyone has similar symptoms. I am scared it might be Crohn’s or even C ..(I am 35 and slim)
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Mrsjulesflo
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Although your Calprotectin level is raised, it is not raised high enough to immediately think of Crohn's disease. What made you think of that in the first place? Do you have any other symptoms?
Hi, thank you for your reply. I’ve also had some bright red blood coating stool (when there’s hard stool). It’s mostly the feeling that the right hand side area of belly button is swollen and also hard at times. And painful. I know that Chrohns makes the wall of the bowel thicken and was thinking this could be the reason, but I don’t have the typical diarrhea that comes with, so it’s all confusing. The pain has been localised in the right side of belly button and appendix from the very beginning but it is not constant. I comes in waves, sometimes stays longer. Gurgling in that area and also sometimes the whole abdomen are present. Back ache in the same area as if radiating on the other side. Shortness of breath at times.
Before all this started I had been towards the constipation side, I don’t remember ever having diarrhea to this scale or even ever. I was tested for celiac and negative. Bloods are normal. Crp normal. Ferritin low but within normal range.
I was wondering whether people with Crohns in the ileum/cecum/appendix area could visibly see the “swollenness” of the bowel. Even my husband said that he could notice that area is slightly raised. Or might it be because I am fairly thin and the right bowel is bigger?(49kg 159 height).. still something is not adding up..
I suffer with Crohn's, and have done for 54 years now. I am sometimes c and sometimes d. My tummy swells up (bloats) and goes quite hard, it also relaxes and goes soft. I hear it, sometimes very loudly with the gurgling, and sometimes I don't even know it's there. I have severe pain, moderate pain and slightly uncomfortable feelings in my tummy. I am sure if any one was to look at there symptoms and cherry pick, they would all diagnose themselves with Crohn's disease, this is why I say don't worry what anybody else has or feels or does, IBS/IBD is an individual disease that treats everyone of its sufferers as individuals and this is what makes it so hard to discover and diagnose. The bog standard tools are the Calprotectin level and Colonoscopy (with biopsies), and, I believe, these two tests between them give a 90% accurate diagnosis. My Crohn's was diagnosed in the Ileum (as most cases of Crohn's disease are) and my weight has been down to 5.5 stones (35 Kg). When you have your colonoscopy you can ask the operator, who would normally be a consultant gastroenterologist, for his opinion. (They are generally 99% right). Good luck, and please keep us posted.
Thank you for your kind reply. It’s true, it will be a journey till diagnosis. I will ask the gastro doctor who performs the colonoscopy what he thinks. I am terrified though to find out I might have Crohn’s. Let alone C. (I am often catastrophising). The idea of a limiting life is hard to take in. When you have/had the pain, was it localised or all over the abdomen? Have you been on daily medication all the time? I am so sorry you have suffered from this in life xx sending kind thoughts
My pain tends to be left sided, but even as I write that it seems to be more central at the moment. The problem with any pain in the tummy is that it is often referred, and therefore, it may appear on the left, but when the doctor examines the right hand side, he hits the spot bang on. As I said this is a real pain in the 4r53, as it keeps on changing, just to keep your medics and you on your toes.
Yes I noticed that too. In my case pushing on left side it hurt on right and pushing in right it hurt on right. As i said it is very localised, sometimes feeling that there’s a foreign object/worm/tube not sure how to call it, but this is not that often. I thought I had appendicitis in the 1st place. Then when AE doctor said it might be Crohns I didn’t even know what that was. But looking back in my life I did have some pain in the right hand side where gallbladder is and once I had an MRI but they never discovered the reason for my right side pain with the MRI as came back normal. Do you get lower back aches?
Yes, I do, but mine are mainly due to previous operations, when they used to throw you around like you were a sack of potatoes. I find that going to an Osteopath (a good one) helps with that.
Thank you for taking the time to reply. I will look into osteopathy as well once I start getting some kind of diagnosis. I will update on the colonoscopy once they give me an answer or half-answer. (they should take biopsy)
I think majority would agree, but when we see test results (ie calpro in your case) we naturally start thinking the worst possible scenario.
At FReedman said, your calpro is high but not high enough to determine anything like Crohns. If I were you, I would try to manage my stress and wait til the colonoscopy is done for definitive answers.
Thank you I know I need to keep stress down but it’s very hard when abdominal pain distracts me from it. I really hope the colonoscopy will give an answer although people on this forum say that Crohns takes a long time to diagnose..
Just had second colonoscopy and they managed to get past all loops. First results were normal looking bowel, but they took 10 biopsies. Gastro said more tests on small bowel need to be done to rule out IBD, as Crohn’s can be in the small bowel. So yes, the search continues, and I am sure everyone else here has a constant struggle with this “unseen” disease.
Mrsjulesflo, I have similar symptoms to yours. I also get pain on my right hand side and I can actually feel where it's tender, although my stomach isn't raised.
I have had a calprotectin test and a colonoscopy in November. So with the calprotectin test my results came back at 64 and the colonoscopy they found mild patchy erythema at the end of the colon, going into the small intestine. They took biopsies and these just came back as 'mild patchy inflammation'.
I am also concerned it's Crohns , as I do have stomach discomfort (not severe) and alternate between diarrhoea and constipation. When constipated the right side of my stomach tends to hurt. My GP has referred me for more tests and my next appointment is in March but I'm so worried it's Crohns.
Does anyone have any insight on what I could possibly have? Does this sound like Crohns. I thought the colonoscopy was going to give me a defiant diagnosis but no such luck. I know they normally see granlomas in the biopsy but there was nothing like that.
Very concerned that its confined to my small intestines and the colonoscopy didn't catch it.
Appreciate some advice or knowledge on this because I am quite worried and frustrated.
Hi RaulP1! I don’t think anyone here can give you a definite answer unfortunately, I am in the same boat, we need to rule out IBD through tests. IBS can cause very similar symptoms. Your calprotectin is very low to be Crohns, they say anything up to 150 is more likely IBS. Mine was 98 this time but a couple of years ago it was 300 (I did not investigate then as I wasn’t symptomatic, big mistake!). My colonoscopy had normal appearance however they took 10 biopsies. I was also told Crohns can indeed be in small bowel in which case more tests need to be done, if biopsies come back normal too. I still have the pain, it is very localised right side of belly button and sometimes raised tummy. I’m also constipated most of the time. I have also started the probiotics Alflorex (trial given by IBSNetwork) and my tummy is ever so slightly better, not much though. It’s for one month and I only started it on Monday. I will continue investigating the small bowel to rule out Crohns, and if this is the case, I will approach the IBS with trial and error things. Unfortunately there’s no one single answer for everyone, we need to find our triggers, including the mental ones. I suffer from anxiety, and this has added to it. Keep investigating and let us know what you find out! And take care of yourself. x
Thank you so much for your reply! Yes that is what I found confusing, as my Calprotectin was 64, so not very high. I have really bad anxiety with this too and am really dreading it being Crohns but I have a feeling it is.
I did my Calprotectin test in October and since then my symptoms have either improved or stayed about the same. I get more mucus and diarrhoea but no blood, no fever. Lost a bit of weight but I think that was due to my anxiety as I didn't feel like eating. I am now working on losing weight generally and eating healthy but I am actively trying to lose weight.
My biopsies showed just mild inflammation and to check for possible infection but nothing about IBD. So not sure... next appointment is in March, so will see what happens.
At least for now symptoms aren't really getting worse and I tend to have to use the loo about 2 times a day - so nothing too extreme.
We shall see - just hate how long it takes to get an answer! I will keep you updated. Hope everything works out for you and we can start to feel better soon! You take care of yourself too! xXx
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Third times a charm...for Remicade
High calprotectin clear colonoscopy small bowel Crohn's?
So scared can't stop worrying 
