Trying to understand persistent GI symptoms. Any insights?

Maybe I missed it, but did you have an abdominal ct scan with contrast?

@caroljeand
Yes, I did. I had an abdominal CT Enterography with IV contrast in mid-June. It was originally ordered because a previous colonoscopy showed two small, superficial ulcers near my ileocecal valve (which were probably just from taking a course of Diclofenac/NSAIDs that I had finished almost three weeks prior to the scope).

I had to do the oral prep with water instead of the usual stuff because of a lactose sensitivity.

It’s Findings:
* Lung bases without special findings.
* Good filling of the small bowel loops by water was not achieved.
* No wall thickening was demonstrated in the small bowel loops.
* No abnormal enhancement of the small bowel wall was demonstrated.
* No mesenteric fat stranding.
* No evidence of sinus tract or fistula.
* Stomach without prominent findings.
* Large intestine without prominent findings.
* Liver normal in size and texture, without biliary duct dilatation.
* Spleen normal in size and texture.
* Pancreas normal in size and texture, without pancreatic duct dilatation.
* Adrenals normal in size.
* Kidneys normal in size, parenchymal thickness preserved. No hydronephrosis.
* No enlarged lymph nodes were demonstrated in the retroperitoneum.
* Abdominal aorta demonstrated with normal diameter.
* No free fluid demonstrated in the peritoneal cavity.
* Pelvic organs normal.
* No enlarged lymph nodes demonstrated in the pelvis or groins.
* Urinary bladder with regular wall.
* Bony structure without special findings.

Summary: Distension of small bowel loops is suboptimal. With this reservation, no abnormal finding is observed.

@velvinyl
That’s important information. I had one that showed stenosis of my peripheral celiac artery. Significant information to know and based on my symptoms it’s a large contributor to my problems.
Good luck to you!

@caroljeand
Thank you so much for sharing that! I am really glad they were able to catch that on your scan so you could finally understand what was contributing to your problems.
If you are open to sharing, I am really curious about the timeline of your journey with the celiac artery stenosis. What was your absolute primary symptom? For me, it’s constant nausea, and a globus sensation and sometimes lightheadedness. How did your symptoms initially start?
Did your symptoms have a sudden, cyclical onset, or did they slowly build up over time? And once they started, did they come and go in waves, or was it a pretty constant daily struggle?

I'm also wondering if your standard CT with contrast was enough to catch the stenosis, or if you had to push your doctors for a specific vascular scan to finally see it.

Please don't feel any pressure to answer if it's too much typing, but any insight into how your symptoms developed would be so incredibly helpful for me to keep in mind.

I’m happy to share…
Five years ago I had the same scan because I had belching issues. It showed slight vascular calcifications. The belching eased up and that was that. I always had a feeling of water floating around in my stomach which I thought was odd.
In 2025 I was diagnosed with polymyalgia rheumatica after I cut my foot and had 7 stitches. The trauma and inflammation triggered it….Genetic link to my mom who had it. Treatment is a high dose of prednisone indefinitely. I was able to wean off and get the newly invented injection to prevent the pain. In February of this year I was off prednisone which had caused stomach upset so I was on acid reducers and plenty of them.
I gradually took myself off since I felt I shouldn’t need them but I felt terrible nausea. Thought it might be the rebound effect that they talk about. Hurt my neck and had to go on a 6 day pack of steroids again so I went back on the acid reducers to protect my stomach. That triggered a bout of diarrhea , terrible nausea, gas, fatigue, weight loss, growling in my stomach, loss of appetite.
I assumed I had sibo due to the acid reducers I was on for so long. After awhile nothing seemed to help. The gastroenterologist said I had Ibs and functional dyspepsia and I should use ibgard. A week later I begged my primary care doctor to get to the bottom of it as I was worse. So after blood tests and stool tests that showed nothing the ct scan did reveal the problem.
It was probably working on me for several years but it all came to a head over a few months.
Hopefully the surgeon will be able to restore my life back.
I may additionally still have sibo.

@caroljeand
I really hope the surgeon is able to fix the artery and bring you some serious relief so you can start feeling like yourself again! And honestly, your suspicion about also having SIBO makes total sense after being on acid reducers for so long.
It is honestly so frustrating because they are trying to pin mine on IBS, too. Since I'm young, doctors almost always jump straight to saying it's just stress or anxiety. But before I was put on Methotrexate for 2-3 months, I had absolutely zero stomach problems in my entire life—let alone this severe nausea.
I have really lost trust in the medical system after a massive misdiagnosis back home, and that trust just keeps eroding. I understand that speculation is part of medicine, but it feels like whenever they don't know the answer, they just slap a random label on it.
For example, I had knee swelling for 4-5 years.
They kept ordering standard 1.5T MRIs and told me i need to see a rheumatologist. It wasn't until I went to Germany that they debunked the diagnosis-they pointed out I had no clinical signs or blood markers for it, aside from a slightly elevated ANA (which is normal for a third of healthy women).
They finally ordered a high-resolution 3 Tesla
MRI, and it turned out to just be a meniscus tear! A completely mechanical issue.
I am just all over the place right now and don't know who to turn to. It feels like so many doctors just memorize textbooks but don't actually know how to look at the big picture and connect the dots. I just want real answers so i can resume my life and studies.

@velvinyl
I understand you completely. I am 78, soon to be 79. The medical field has become so specialized that doctors have such tunnel vision and don’t think out of the box. I’m tired of being dismissed for my symptoms and only after saying I think I should have a ct scan was the problem identified. We shouldn’t be the ones doing the research to understand what is wrong with us.
Thankful for this site to be able to get real experiences from real people!

First, I'm sorry. Wondered if the GI issues are not totally unrelated to the medicine? Could the timing be coincidence?
By chance did you have HIDA scan to check gallbladder function? That can be a problem even if you don't have gallstones. Timing seems odd but there's an expression that dogs can have fleas and ticks.
Best of luck

@member8675309
Thanks you for your kind reply.

I actually had an abdominal CT scan, ultrasounds, and liver function blood tests, and everything came back normal, so no one has suggested a HIDA scan so far.

As for the medicine, I’m honestly not sure. It could be completely unrelated. The timing is confusing because after I stopped the medication, I actually felt back to normal for a while before the GI symptoms started. So I’m really not sure if it’s connected or just a coincidence. At this point, I’m honestly a bit lost trying to figure it all out.

Just a comment. Having negative RF and inflammatory markers does not mean you don't have an inflammatory autoimmune condition. My husband has severe rheumatoid arthritis with joint distortion and has negative tested positive for RF or inflammatory markers. I also have an autoimmune connective tissue disease, but my inflammatory markers are always low, no matter how much pain I am in.