Sunday, February, 12, 2012

Diarrhea

Table of Contents

Call your doctor if:

  • You have blood or pus in your stools
  • Your stools are black
  • You have abdominal pain that is not relieved by a bowel movement
  • You have symptoms of dehydration such as light-headedness when sitting or standing up
  • You have a fever above 101°F, or your child has a fever above 100.4°F, along with diarrhea
  • You have foul-smelling or oily-looking stools
  • You have recently traveled to a foreign country
  • You have eaten with other people who also have diarrhea
  • You have started on a new medication
  • Your diarrhea does not get better in 5 days (2 days for an infant or child), or worsens before that
  • Your or your child has been vomiting for more than 12 hours (in a newborn under 3 months you should call as soon as vomiting or diarrhea begins)

What to expect at your health care provider's office

Your doctor will take a complete medical history and do a physical examination, paying careful attention to your abdomen.

Questions that the doctor may ask include:

  • When did your diarrhea start?
  • What is the color and consistency of your stool?
  • Do you have blood in your stool?
  • Are you passing large amounts of mucus with your stool?
  • What other symptoms do you have?
  • Do you have abdominal pain or severe cramping with the diarrhea?
  • Do you have fever or chills?
  • Are any other family members sick?
  • Have you recently traveled out of the country?
  • Have you possibly been exposed to unpurified water or spoiled food?
  • What makes your pain worse? Stress? Specific foods?
  • Have you had abdominal surgery?
  • Have you taken antibiotics recently?
  • What medications do you take? Any recent changes to your medications?
  • Do you drink coffee? How much?
  • Do you drink alcohol? How much? How often?
  • Do you smoke? How much each day?
  • Are you on a special diet?

Your doctor may ask you to obtain one or more stool samples in special containers to test for signs of inflammation and infection and to identify an organism that may be causing infection.

If there are signs of dehydration in addition to the diarrhea, your doctor may order:

  • Basic metabolic panel (to check electrolyte levels in your blood)
  • BUN and serum creatinine tests
  • Urine specific gravity

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Review Date: 02/08/2010
Reviewed By: David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)