Help the development of the site, sharing the article with friends!

If you have had fatty diarrhea for days or even weeks, see your doctor. Fatty diarrhea can have various causes, sometimes dangerous to he alth, so it is necessary to diagnose it and start treatment.

Fatty diarrheais a type of chronic diarrhea that lasts over 4 weeks. Stools are characterized by a high content of undigested fat, many times exceeding the norm. This state of affairs is based on digestive disorders, resulting from pancreatic exocrine insufficiency, and malabsorption - resulting from intestinal mucosa diseases, most often celiac disease. In older people, fatty diarrhea also occurs as a result of an overgrowth of the bacterial flora of the small intestine. Other causes of this diarrhea include cystic fibrosis, loss of part of the pancreas (e.g. after pancreatic cancer resection surgery), cholestatic liver disease (cholestasis), bile duct cancer, and removal of a section of the intestine.

How to recognize fatty diarrhea

It is not easy for the average person to distinguish fatty diarrhea from other chronic diarrhea. First, you need to know when you can talk about diarrhea at all. This is when stools are passed frequently - more than three times a day - and have a loose, liquid or semi-liquid consistency. The most distinctive feature of fatty diarrhea is its light color, a very unpleasant putrid smell, and a greasy consistency that is difficult to rinse with water in the toilet bowl. Additionally, the patient often complains of abdominal pain and abdominal cramps, gas, and weight loss. Symptoms such as:

  • nausea and even vomiting - this may indicate pancreatic disease;
  • jaundice, yellow eyes and itchy skin, amber-colored urine - which are associated with diseases of the liver and bile ducts;
  • discolored, white stools - characteristic of cholestatic liver disease;
  • blood in the stool - it could be caused by enteritis or celiac disease;

If you have any of these symptoms, be sure to tell your doctor about them.

Fatty diarrhea: diagnostic procedure

Chronic diarrhea can cause many diseases of the small intestine, large intestine, pancreas and liver. Only a thorough medical interview, athen the appropriate tests will allow you to make a proper diagnosis. The fatty diarrhea itself is not a disease, but only a symptom of a disease, sometimes very dangerous, which has yet to be determined.

First, you should find out if your diarrhea is being caused by an organic cause, such as inflammation or cancer. For this purpose, endoscopic examination of the small intestine with specimen collection, ultrasound examination (USG) and computed tomography of the abdominal cavity, including the pancreas, as well as immunological examination for celiac disease are performed.

When it comes to laboratory tests, your doctor will order ESR and complete blood counts, electrolytes, creatinine, and urea. TSH, total protein, pancreatic enzymes, stool culture and examination of histopathological specimens taken during intestinal endoscopy will also be tested.

Fecal Fat Test

The stool test consists of collecting stools within 72 hours and assessing the following parameters: pH, potassium and sodium concentration, culture, the presence of leukocytes and lactoferrin - which will indicate a bacterial infection, occult blood and fat content. To qualify diarrhea as the fat limit of the latter parameter, it has to be exceeded many times, and it amounts to 2-7 g / 24 h, if the fat is less than 20% of the sample. It is worth adding here that before starting the study, you should follow a proper diet. Fat consumption should be between 50 and 150 g per day and come from plant sources such as rapeseed oil and olive oil. In the days leading up to the collection of the material, do not use rectal suppositories or even apply oily creams in the perianal area.

Fatty diarrhea: treatment depends on the cause

Treatment can only be started after a diagnosis has been made, but it will obviously vary depending on the disease. For example, in the treatment of malabsorption due to damage to the pancreas, there are, among others, therapy with pancreatic enzymes that the patient is missing. If celiac disease causes fatty diarrhea, a gluten-free diet will be the solution. And when we are dealing with an overgrowth of bacterial flora - antibiotic therapy. The greatest threat for patients with chronic diarrhea, including fatty diarrhea, is dehydration and loss of electrolytes, therefore proper hydration and supplementation of deficiencies is the basis of any treatment in this case.

Help the development of the site, sharing the article with friends!

Category:

Research