Tagged As: Constipation Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Question:
Can you have irritable bowel syndrome with blood in your stool? I was given a diagnosis of IBS by my gastro and I'm a bit confused by this.
Answer:
You may well have IBS, but it isn't causing the blood in your stool. Something else is causing that. Although indirectly, I guess, the IBS could cause constipation, which could cause hemorrhoids or anal fissures. With anal fissures you usually see blood on the toilet paper but not so much on the stool itself. Hemorrhoids tend to bleed a little more than fissures and you're more likely to see some blood in the toilet. If your gastroenterologist told you the IBS itself directly causes bloody stools, I'd get a second opinion. It is possible to have IBS and an inflammatory bowel disease. IBS only affects the colon, while IBD can happen anywhere in the digestive tract. I was correctly dx'd with spastic colon (another name for IBS) but my very mild Crohn's was missed for years because it is in the small intestine (and it is quite mild). I'm not saying *you* have an IBD - it's possible that you have an internal hemorrhoid that is bleeding - just that it is possible to have both IBS and IBD.
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