In this thread, my friend Pat, who was experiencing baffling digestive symptoms, asked for suggestions from the Dopers on avenues to explore with her doctor. You were all very helpful, especially Broomstick.
She has a diagnosis now; she’s been diagnosed with Small Bowel Bacterial Overgrowth (SBBO), which is apparently when one’s normal intestinal population mushrooms and disrupts everything. I’m linking to Wikipedia here.
Pat had some more questions to pose to the message board members. Of course, as I said in the other thread, Pat is not stupid enough to self-medicate, and she’s under the care of an apparently pretty competent doctor. She’s just trying to get an idea what she’s in for, and possible suggestions for treatments to discuss with the doc.
That said, Pat asked me to post the following questions. Any inputs you guys have would be welcomed.
Has anybody had SBBO?
What were their symptoms?
Did their symptoms include too much ‘gas’ in the stomach and/or throat? Could they feel the “gas” in their throat when they swallowed?
(Pat finds the gas-filled stomach sensation to be the most onerous, as it makes it difficult for her to swallow food.)
Were there any foods that increased, or any foods that reduced, symptoms?
(Wikipedia talks about cyclical antibiotic treatments.)
What was done for treatment?
Did they have to take more than one antibiotic to eliminate the symptoms?
What did they do after the antibiotics were through?
Did symptoms return? What did they do then?
Did they use “probiotics” to replace the ‘good’ bacteria? If so, did it work?