Can I have Crohn's / IBD even if all blood and stool tests are negative?

Hello,

I'm curious as to if anyone here was diagnosed with Crohn's or IBD via colonoscopy who also had all previous blood / stool tests come back negative. Here are the tests I have had done so far that have come back normal:

• Calprotectin - Stool
• Complete Blood Count
• C-Reactive Protein (One was normal, one was very very slightly elevated, elevated result was first, then normal)
• Complete Metabolic Panel
• A bunch of other tests for other diseases
• A CT scan of the abdomen which came back clean

Here are my symptoms:

• Gas / Bloating
• Pain in one particular spot on my left side under my ribs - It seems like gas sometimes but other times it feels like there is something there. The intensity of the pain varies.
• Same kind of pain on the right side, but less frequent and severe
• Diarrhea
• Constipation (Moreso than Diarrhea)
• Extremely dry eyes
• Environmental Allergies
• Dizziness when standing
• Trouble Breathing

The only test I had was one I ordered myself online, which said I have high amounts of yeast in my stool. My GI doctor has dismissed this test as "experimental". Everything else has come back normal.


My questions are:

• Can I have Crohn's or IBD even though all of my blood / stool tests have been normal so far?
  
  
• Do my symptoms fit IBD, especially the non-GI ones like Dry Eye, Dizziness and trouble breathing?
  
  
• Is it worth having a colonoscopy done?

Any help anyone here can give would be much appreciated. I would like to know if anyone else has had a similar experience / similar symptoms. My GI doc is recommending a colonoscopy / endoscopy but since there haven't been any tests pointing to IBD so far I'm hesitant to get it done.



Thanks!

Hi. I can't be sure. I have Crohn"s disease. Recently, the feeling you mentioned around your ribs i have felt myself. I would say to go ahead with the tests that the doctor has recommended. Let us know how you are.

The digestive symptoms you report could be due to IBD, or they could be a lot of other things too, IBS for example. That's why your doc wants the colonoscopy - to help figure out what is going on. If the colonoscopy shows inflamed tissue it points to IBD. If everything looks normal it suggests IBS or maybe an infection. These things are all treated very differently.

If I were you I'd get the colonoscopy. When it comes to bowel problems, more knowledge is better than less knowledge.

Scipio said:

The digestive symptoms you report could be due to IBD, or they could be a lot of other things too, IBS for example. That's why your doc wants the colonoscopy - to help figure out what is going on. If the colonoscopy shows inflamed tissue it points to IBD. If everything looks normal it suggests IBS or maybe an infection. These things are all treated very differently.

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Thanks. I just find it so odd that none of my tests have come back with any indications of IBD. I'm also afraid of the colonoscopy, not only of the prep but also the possibility of catching something from the procedure due to the scope. I have read that sometimes they are unable to completely sterilize the scopes and that worries me.

No one likes a colonoscopy, but they really aren't that bad. Pretty much everyone gets through it okay. Drinking the prep fluid with resultant diarrhea is probably the worst part.

While no procedure is ever 100% safe, the outbreak of infections from incompletely sterilized scopes you've heard about were caused by duodenoscopes used to investigate pancreatic problems. Colonoscopies are performed with a different instrument - the colonoscope, which has not had those same problems.

And your IBD tests coming back negative may well mean that you have IBS instead of IBD, which would be very good news since IBS is a much less serious disease. But the colonoscopy is needed to help determine which one you have (or perhaps something else entirely).

My blood tests were all normal even when I was diagnosed with Crohn's (via colonoscopy). To this day they are still normal during flares or other issues.

My blood work all came back normal. I was told the only way for a true diagnosis was a colonoscopy. Therefore, I would say yes you can have Crohn's with normal blood work.

For me:
Normal stool tests
Normal blood work
Normal CT scan with contrast
Normal MRI scan with contrast
Colonoscopy and upper endoscopy both found inflammation and ulcers in small bowl.
Diagnosis - Crohn's and coeliac disease.