I am a 37 year old male. Lately, I have been running to the bathroom more often than usual and I usually have at least two bowel movements per day and if I don't, I have a lot of gas. Also, I have lost a few pounds even though I eat quite a lot (at least seven times per day, including a lot of snacks). What could be the cause of this?
REPLY:
The described symptoms of change in bowel habits with increased frequency of bowel movements, increased intestinal gas, and weightloss despite what appears to be a good appetite are too vague by themselves to suggest a specific diagnosis. Many possibilities come to mind and I would need to sit down and question someone with these complaints, go over his/her past medical history, see if there is anything specific was apparent on physical exam, and then check some general and some very specific lab tests on blood and stool samples.
With this approach it would be fairly easy to exclude a large number of possible diagnoses and focus on those remaining.
You should consider seeing your physician or asking for a referral to a gastroenterologist. Your family doctor or internist could handle most if not all of this workup unless he/she felt your care required a specialist's input.
Sorry but there are too many possibilities to begin to elaborate on even a few specific diagnoses in this setting.
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Bruce Sckolnick, M.D.
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