This is a continuation of my blogs on the G. I. tract. So, we are now into the lower portion. I have more experience with diverticulitis than any of the many other “conditions” that can affect this portion of your body such as Crohn”s disease and ulcerative colitis which are the two more common forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). I, also, don’t have any experience with colon cancer but will talk about that later.

Diverticular disease means that you have small pouches poking out along the walls of the colon. These pouches are called diverticula. This condition is very common as a person gets older. The presence of diverticula in your colon may not be a problem at all. Or can cause cramping, bloating, and/or bleeding. If you see blood in your stool, see your doctor. Diverticula may also become inflamed or infected (diverticulitis). This could be relatively minor and somewhat controlled by NSAIDs (under your doctor’s care). Or major, with pain in your lower abdomen, fever, nausea and vomiting. This is definitely something your Gastroenterologist should be following. He/she will probably order some radiographic studies and, depending on the results, may put you on antibiotics such as flagyl and cipro. These drugs will normally control the infection but are not particularly fun to take. But take them as prescribed anyway. Be sure you stay in touch with your doctor through all this as diverticulitis can be more serious than we’ve covered here so far. For instance, a pouch can rupture and spill intestinal waste into the abdominal cavity causing peritonitis. There are even cases where a patient has to have surgery to remove the affected portion of the colon. But, no matter what, you should follow your doctor’s advice. By the way, it used to be recommended that patients with diverticulitis avoid seeds, popcorn, and nuts to prevent attacks, but recent studies suggests this isn’t necessary. I did have a patient that swore seeds and/or popcorn gave him attacks and he avoided them at all cost.

I will discuss “flatulence,” “colonoscopies,’ and “colon cancer” on another blog.

Thanks for reading.