Hi everone

[Carol Arnett]

I haven`t posted for a long time. Guess I have been feeling sorry for myself.

MC is under control with Asacol but I have been suffering severe pain under my right rib cage and have been having tests to see if it is gallbladder pain.
yesterday I had an Endoscopy and the doctor says I have Gastritis. He wants to see if medication will stop the pain. If it does, he says that would rule out gallbladder which is what the surgeon said when I saw him.
He did a biopsy to check for H-pylori.

Gastritis sounded pretty beneign until I read about it from the Mayo Clinic site. Now I don`t know what to think. I was still pretty out of it when I spoke with the doctor. Don`t have an appointment until 4-20 and that is subject to change since he is the number 1 gastro in this area, thus extremely busy.

to all newbies. You all know by now that you have come to the best site possible to receive good information, support and a wonderful family.

Dee, I hope you are getting a handle on your health problem and on the personal ones, as well.

I have been reading posts but just haven`t had it in me to reply. Pain is my very worst enemy. It just saps everything in me to the point where I can`t even think.

Hopeing this finds everyone doing as well as possible. Love, Carol

[JLH]

Good to see you posting. I'm so sorry to hear that you've been having such a bad time. I hope your docs get it all figured out very soon.




Love,

[Rose]

Carol,

Welcome back. I hope that you get your pain under control and feeling better soon.

Love,

Rose

[tex]

Hi Carol,

It's good to see you posting again, but I'm sorry to hear of the new problem.

Actually, gastritis can be caused by many things, one of which is bacteria, and H. pylori is indeed the most common type of bacteria to cause gastritis, so your doctor is on the ball to check that out as a possibility. The results of the examination of the biopsy samples should give you an answer to the question of whether or not H. pylori is the problem. If the results are negative, though, then you are going to have to look elsewhere for the problem.

Your doctor is probably never going to think of this, and he will probably laugh at the idea, if you suggest it, but your gastritis could be due to the Asacol that you're taking. Here's why:

One of the most common causes of gastritis is aspirin. Aspirin is salicylic acid. Asacol is Mesalamine, and mesalamine is a derivative of salicylic acid. It could, therefore, be the cause of your gastritis, and this should be checked out. Most doctors consider Asacol to be a very safe medication, but the fact of the matter is that it has been connected with some very serious GI issues. For example, for some individuals, especially those who have been using Asacol for long periods of time, Asacol has been shown to cause chronic pancreatitis, which is a very serious condition, and many doctors are not even aware of this risk.

Certain supplements can cause gastritis for some individuals, such as iron tablets, or potassium supplements. If you are taking any of those, they could possibly be the cause of the problem, or a part of the cause.

Also, be aware that gastritis can be due to autoimmune causes, and anyone with MC is vulnerable to additional autoimmune issues. Gastritis can even be due to the same pattern of inflammation that causes MC. Does that make it a part of MC? Technically no, because of the way that MC is named, (colitis can only refer to the colon), but the fact of the matter is that the same type of inflammation that cause the symptoms of MC, can also be found in the small intestine, and even the stomach, for some of us.

Note that most "mature" people with chronic gastritis, tend to develop a deficiency of vitamin B-12, which can cause increasing weakness, loss of memory, and depression, so please be sure that you take some extra B-12. You can't take too much B-12, so don't worry about an overdose. Also, be sure you take the sublingual form, (the tablets are designed to be dissolved under the tongue, and the directions on the label should state that).

I hope you can find the cause, and get it corrected soon. It's a heck of a note that you have to continue to suffer for another five weeks, while you're waiting for the next appointment. The way the medical establishment operates, seems to be kind of cruel, sometimes, IMO.

Love,
Tex

[barbaranoela]

Carol----sorry to hear of your issues----and listen--there are plenty of times when !!EYE FEEL SORRY FOR ME!!! and then Mr. Louie says---*I know U feel miserable but tomorrow brings a new day and U will feel better about things-----*

Of course, I am not suffering the way U are and I do hope issues get settled and U can put that SMILE back on your face--

Luve Barbara

[Carol Arnett]

Hello and thanks Joan, Rose, Barbara and Tex for your support and good wishes.

Tex, I asked him yesterday if the Asacol could be the problem and he said no. I also asked if this could be related to my MC and he again said no.

I am not taking the supplements that you mentioned, Tex, and as for sublingual B-12, no one around here has it and some Pharmacists have even said they never heard of it. I looked it up on line but the cost is prohibitive for me.

As of today, I am cutting the dosage of Asacol from 800mg 3x daily to two and am going to try to wean off it. I never took any meds when I had other flares and have really just been going along with the program but I am so sick of meds and new conditions I sometimes feel like just flushing all of them.

Another thing: The medication he prescribed is Aciphex and in looking that up I found that it has the same properties as Prilosec and Previcid which I think started all this in the first place. I can`t afford it anyway as it costs $299.80 per month and I have no RX insurance. I called his office and his personnel there said they would talk to him and see if I could take Protonix which they get enough samples of to keep me supplied. That too, is a proton pump inhibitor but I have taken it in the past and have not had a problem with it. Doesn`t make any sense, does it?

I call this a mystery disease (MC). I do not have the food intolerances that most of the rest of you do and the only things that have caused me to have flares are the two things I mentioned and NSAIDS.

I`m just tired of pain and not feeling well all the time. It seems like I can only accomplish one big thing a day. i.e. laundry or mopping the kitchen or polishing furniture but not all in the same day. Maybe I am just getting old. LOL!

Dr. Lisi is a very good listener and is very open to suggestions so yes, when I see him again I will go into all of this with him. Yesterday I was still pretty much under the influence of whatever they gave me. I can even remember saing that 3 times 8 was 16 when I was reminding him of how much Asacol I take.

Thanks for your support and input AND for listening to me complain. I truly do love you all. Carol

[starfire]

Carol,
I am so very sorry to hear about your latest trial. I can't imagine living with pain like that all the time. I sure hope they/someone finds something soon that will help you.



Love, Shirley

[tex]

Carol,

If you react to NSAIDs, then regardless of what your doctor says about Asacol being safe, it is very, very likely that Asacol is the source of your problems, because it is clearly an NSAID derivative.

I have to wonder about those pharmacists who said they had never heard of sublingual B-12. In the area where I live, all the health food stores carry it. The drugstores probably do also, but I don't believe I've ever looked for it there. I've picked it up at Wal-mart, before, though.

The form of B-12 in the subligual lozenges is methylcobalamin, (rather than the cyanocobalamin used in the more common tablets). If you have a malabsorption problem, the regular form of B-12 will be poorly absorbed, but the sublingual lozenges will disolve under the tongue, and go directly into the blood stream. My favorite B-12 contains 1000 mcg of methylcobalamin, and 400 mcg of folic acid, which make a good balance, since folic acid is necessary for the proper absorption of B-12.

If you are not having a malabsorption problem, then the cyanocobalamin form of B-12 may work all right for you, but it takes more of it to do the job, because if I recall correctly, only about 10% or so of it is absorbed, even in "normal", healthy individuals.

If you're eating a good, balanced diet, though, you may not need any additional vitamin B-12, anyway, because you should be able to get enough from your food. Only if the gastritis lasts for a long time, would you need to worry about a vitamin B-12 deficiency, because the body can store enough B-12 to last for a long time, (even for years).

I'm certainly not a doctor, but I believe that you are on the right track to try to wean off of the Asacol, and discontinue using it. I have a hunch that once it is completely out of your system, your gastritis will soon fade away.

Love,
Tex

[mia]

Tex- you are such a great source of informed advice and knowledge. I was going to look up gastritis, but you supplied everything I needed. I was going to ask about taking the herb 'white willow bark', but I think you answered that here already- apparantly it has the same salycyclic acid, in natural form, that is in aspirin. So sounds like taking that for inflammation isn't a good idea after all.
Thanks Tex!
Mia

[tex]

Hi Mia,

I agree with your conclusions about white willow bark. It may not be quite as risky as aspirin, but it probably would not be a good idea for someone with MC.

You are very welcome,
Tex

[JLH]

http://www.puritan.com/b-vitamins-108/s ... sku=069669

It is the same as what I've been getting at the HFS for twice as much. I even found a FREE shipping code TAFF819.

[JLH]

Problems with the code! Two reps said it had expired. I found it on at least 5 different web sites that it was good through 3/31/09.
Third time was the charm. I was going to ask for a supervisor but the rep took the shipping fee off for me.

[MaggieRedwings]

Carol,

So nice to see you posting but feel really bad that you have incurred another medical problem. Here's hoping it is under control soon and you are feeling much better.

Love, Maggie