Test results are in!

It is during our darkest moments that we must see the light-

Aristotle Onassis

 



Earlier this week I had to travel to North Carolina to Wake Forest Baptist Hospital for a CT scan with contrast and a four hour gastric emptying test.  The CT scan consist of an oral contrast as well as an IV contrast.  The prep and test only took a couple of hours.  When you get a phone call from your doctor herself the next day you know something is up.  The CT findings showed numerous filling defects and fecal material throughout my colon. I have at least two areas of narrowing in my transverse colon which is most likely due to peristalsis.  Lack of peristalsis is basically lack of movement/contracts in my transverse colon.  Sometimes a lesion in the colon can have a similar appearance but given the fact that I had a colonoscopy that did not reveal a mass in January of 2012, my doctor believes this was peristalsis on the CT imagine and not mass.  Due to the CT imaging they are requesting for me to have another colonoscopy soon. So my question is why do I have narrowing parts in my transverse colon? What the cause and will it progressively get worse?  What are the treatments? Is it something that I need to be overly concerned about? I know when my last colonoscopy was done by my pervious doctor there were areas he couldn't get into.  This makes me wonder if I have had this problem all along considering the narrowing areas.  However, it would explain the pain I seem to always experience.

About a one and a half years ago I had a two hour gastric emptying test done.  The results, I had mild gastroparesis with 30% of my food remaining.  I recently had a four hour gastric emptying test, results showed mild delay and 12.8 % retained at four hours.  Gastric retention percentage at approximate times are as follows:
0 minutes: 100%
30 minutes: 99%
60 minutes: 92.9%
120 minutes: 67.7%  (after this image I started experiencing pain in my stomach)
180 minutes: 26.7% (pain might be my stomachs way of showing digestion since the percentage decreased a fairly good amount.) 
240 minutes: 12.8%

To sum it up, abnormal 2 and 4 hour gastric retention time.  I still have two more tests scheduled in August, Electrogastrogram and an Endoscopic.  In my opinion, I am going to keep pushing on.  I've got to keep reaching out for help and get better.  I crave to be healthy again.  I crave to be more physically active and not loose out on family activities because I am so fatigue.  I refuse to give up.  So with my darkest moments with all the negatives from my health, I have to stay positive and see the light.  The lord is my light and my salvation.