Question: How to diagnose Short Bowel Syndrome ?
Answer: A health care provider diagnoses short bowel syndrome based on
- a medical and family history - a physical exam - blood tests - fecal fat tests - an x-ray of the small and large intestines - upper gastrointestinal (GI) series - computerized tomography (CT) scan
Medical and Family History
Taking a medical and family history may help a health care provider diagnose short bowel syndrome. He or she will ask the patient about symptoms and may request a history of past operations.
Physical Exam
A physical exam may help diagnose short bowel syndrome. During a physical exam, a health care provider usually
- examines a patient's body, looking for muscle wasting or weight loss and signs of vitamin and mineral deficiencies - uses a stethoscope to listen to sounds in the abdomen - taps on specific areas of the patient's body
Blood Tests
A blood test involves drawing a patient's blood at a health care provider's office or a commercial facility and sending the sample to a lab for analysis. Blood tests can show mineral and vitamin levels and measure complete blood count.
Fecal Fat Tests
A fecal fat test measures the body's ability to break down and absorb fat. For this test, a patient provides a stool sample at a health care provider's office. The patient may also use a take-home test kit. The patient collects stool in plastic wrap that he or she lays over the toilet seat and places a sample into a container. A patient can also use a special tissue provided by the health care provider's office to collect the sample and place the tissue into the container. For children wearing diapers, the parent or caretaker can line the diaper with plastic to collect the stool. The health care provider will send the sample to a lab for analysis. A fecal fat test can show how well the small intestine is working.
X-ray
An x-ray is a picture created by using radiation and recorded on film or on a computer. The amount of radiation used is small. An x-ray technician performs the x-ray at a hospital or an outpatient center, and a radiologista doctor who specializes in medical imaginginterprets the images. An x-ray of the small intestine can show that the last segment of the large intestine is narrower than normal. Blocked stool causes the part of the intestine just before this narrow segment to stretch and bulge.
Upper Gastrointestinal Series
Upper GI series, also called a barium swallow, uses x rays and fluoroscopy to help diagnose problems of the upper GI tract. Fluoroscopy is a form of x ray that makes it possible to see the internal organs and their motion on a video monitor. An x-ray technician performs this test at a hospital or an outpatient center, and a radiologist interprets the images.
During the procedure, the patient will stand or sit in front of an x-ray machine and drink barium, a chalky liquid. Barium coats the esophagus, stomach, and small intestine so the radiologist and a health care provider can see the shape of these organs more clearly on x-rays.
A patient may experience bloating and nausea for a short time after the test. For several days afterward, barium liquid in the GI tract causes white or light-colored stools. A health care provider will give the patient specific instructions about eating and drinking after the test. Upper GI series can show narrowing and widening of the small and large intestines.
More information is provided in the NIDDK health topic, Upper GI Series.
Computerized Tomography Scan
Computerized tomography scans use a combination of x-rays and computer technology to create images. For a CT scan, a health care provider may give the patient a solution to drink and an injection of a special dye, called a contrast medium. CT scans require the patient to lie on a table that slides into a tunnel-shaped device that takes x-rays.
An x-ray technician performs the procedure in an outpatient center or a hospital, and a radiologist interprets the images. The patient does not need anesthesia. CT scans can show bowel obstruction and changes in the intestines.