Darned antibiotics!

[JDinVirginia]

Do you find that antibiotics cause you to have bowel accidents? A lot of you are taking or recently have taken antibiotics - what is your experience?

My urologist has me on Cipro prior to my cystoscopy later this week. However, the Cipro has caused me to have diarrhea and poop my pants (diaper, actually) four days in a row! On two of the occasions I barely missed having an accident at social situations. Now, I don't mean just a little leakage. Tow of the incidents were massive diarrhea. Yuk.

Even though I am bowel incontinent, my daily preventive enemas clear me out and I usually average one accident every three weeks or more. This is so unusual for me that I think it has to be the Cipro. Perhaps I am unusually sensitive. That leaves me feeling somewhat gun shy as I may have become overly confident due to my enemas.

The urologist prescribed Cipro because I mentioned that I previously had experienced problems with Amoxicllin.

Unfortunately I think I have doses for another four days.

--John

[schoppy]

You might have a reaction to the Cipro. It does nasty things to me.

[PB&J32]

Just finished a course of Cipro and had no problems with it. Of course, I'm not prone to bowel accidents, but have had 2 small ones in the last year unrelated to that round of medication.

[ILuvLA]

Even though I am not bowel incontinent, I too have problems with Cipro when I take it for UTIs. I've been told that because it is an anti-biotic and kills bacteria, it also kills good, digestive bacteria in your intestines. Thus, why some may experience diarrhea.

So if I have to take Cipro, I also start a regime of plain, Greek yogurt and acidophilus supplements in order to replace lost bacteria. This alleviates the symptoms brought about by the Cipro.

[Papa]

Odd you should mention this. I was sick for two weeks. the first week I lived with it but then went to the doctor. He gave me antibiotics and over the next 10 days of taking them I had 4 bowel accidents. I am only UI and over the last 11 years had maybe only 2 such incidents. I can really sympathize for those of you that are BI. Two of the times I was wearing disposable diapers and two times I was wearing cloth diapers. Totally upset me and angered me. Luckily I was either home or on my way home all those times. So yes I think the meds had a lot to do with it. Papa
This was just over a week ago.

[4wheeldave]

The main problem with antibiotics of any type is they kill the good bacteria in your gut and bowel which causes the problems you are experiencing. I have spent 10 weeks of this year alone on co amoxicillin but thankfully I did ok bowel wise the main problem was a strange metallic taste in my mouth. I had a few days early on after starting the antibiotic when things were a bit loose so I stopped eating fruit and vegetables for a few days until things got better.

Hope it all gets better for you soon.

4wheeldave.

[JDinVirginia]

Interesting responses - thanks!

My urologist was trying to help - he even recommended a probiotic to counteract the effects of the Cipro on the good bacteria in the gut and reduce the likelihood of the diarrhea. Perhaps I am more sensitive than the average but I see that I have company. At least I already was wearing diapers. I'd hate to have been a healthy non-incontinent person and have sudden diarrhea running down my pants!!

At this rate I'll be glad to have the cystoscopy just to get over the side-effects of the Cipro!

However, with my recent experiences, I am going to reduce my time out of the house until the Cipro runs out.

--John

[Patrick]

I am on erythromycin, not for its antibiotic properties, but because it irritates the lining of my stomach, making it do its job. When I started it, it caused me lots of colon grief, but my GI specialist told me to keep my diaper changed and the diarrhea would eventually go away. It did, but I still remember dealing with the smelly messes. That experience influenced me to use Nullo, which I have used ever since. I recently had a prescription for ciprofloxacin, which gave me diarrhea, as it is doing for JD. This makes me glad I wear diapers and use an internal deodorant.

[Inconinmiss]

I've only had cipro prescribed for me once, and it also caused me to have problems with diarrhea. Most antibiotics cause me not problems.

[JDinVirginia]

Interesting comments guys and gals. While I knew that an antibiotic could cause diarrhea, I had no idea that the likelihood of that happening with Cipro was so high. Does anyone know whether it is equally bad with other antibiotics? Of course, my urologist said that some antibiotics just were not effective with an irritated prostate.

--John