From the article: How IBD is Diagnosed
Inflammatory bowel disease is often diagnosed after a colonoscopy, but other tests may also be used. Some people are diagnosed fairly quickly. Others may have been initially misdiagnosed, or wait some time -- undergoing many tests -- to get a correct diagnosis. What tests were used in your diagnosis? How Were You Diagnosed?
how were you diagnosed?
- My UC was diagnosed with colonoscopy and confirmed with a Prometheus blood test
- —fleurdalisa
I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease
- I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease by an upper GI with small bowel series after years of bouts with what was thought to be a 24 hour bug...vomiting, cramps, etc.
- —Guest Cynbear54@aol.com
mookies
- I had an accident at a gas station -- they claimed they didn't have a rest room. I used the floor. The guy chasing me out was screaming "I- bee-deya-ess!" I relayed the incident to my gastroenterologist, and he said "Yes." I guess I have both. But the colonoscopy verified colitis for sure.
- —Guest auramac
Blood & Stool Samples; Sigmoidoscopy
- I was at home from college for the summer. I had bloody diarrhea for two weeks before I said anything to anyone about it. I finally went in to see a nurse practitioner, who said that it could be IBD, hemorroids, or cancer. She referred me to a GI who took blood and stool samples and did a sigmoidoscopy, which confirmed UC as a diagnosis. I had a diagnosis and was on medication before I went back to school. For me, it was a quick onset and a quick diagnosis (except for my initial denial of a problem--I blamed eating raw cookie dough for my symptoms). But, there may have been more subtle signs and symptoms that I didn't notice at first and attributed to something else. That being said, my symptoms have not been under control and I have not been able to stay in remission, though biopsies have confirmed UC several times. I don't doubt having UC, but its quick diagnosis may not be indicative of the outcome of the disease.
- —Guest Anonymous
Wrong Inital Diagnosis
- I was diagnosed with IBS several years before I was finally diagnosed with IBD (proctitis)after a colonoscopy.
- —thermrussells
White blood cell scan
- I was only 13 at the time, and I refused to have a sigmoidoscopy so the doctor performed a white blood cell scan instead. It was much less invasive than the sigmoidoscopy and showed inflammation in the last two thirds of my colon, leading to a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis.
- —Guest Sarah
Upper GI
- I was diagnosed with an upper GI, plus symptoms that seemed to imply a problem. My brother had crohn's, but they didn't catch it until he already needed surgery from severe abdominal pain. That's when and how they made his diagnosis.
- —Guest Anne
Stool Test
- My doctor was insisting I had IBS, until blood showed up in my stool test. I was then sent for a colonoscopy which confirmed the diagnosis of IBD.
- —Guest irene
Multiple tests Needed
- I had a colonoscopy, x rays and stool samples done before I got my diagnosis. It took forever because I was having intermittent symptoms. It wasn't until the colonoscopy that they finally figured out that it was IBD.
- —Guest Kristi
