Hi all,

About 3 weeks ago I had my takedown. Six days in hospital and then home. Two or three days after coming home I seemed to be on the road to recovery but then I took a nose-dive.

I started getting intolerable pain in my back passage, stools were like water (as you would expect at that time) and going up to 15 times a day.

My local doctor gave me a brief examination and said I had a fissure. But after two days more of terrible pain I started to think that a small fissure would not cause continuous pain of that level.

After 7 days of debilitating pain, out of desperation I took some Ciprofloxacin I had left over and within less than 24 hours the pain receded considerably.

I saw my surgeon. He performed a small scope inspection and said that there was no sign of pouchitous, the fissure was only 3mm long and not deep but my back passage was sore. He said to continue with the Cipro for 7 days.

Five days of taking Cipro and only 3 weeks after the op, I have next to no pain, about 6 trips to the bathroom in 24 hours and my stools are semi formed. It is like a miracle.

My worry is however, when I come off the Cipro the pain and the frequency will return. This could be because the Cipro destroys the acidic bacteria that causes a lot of the problems.

Has anyone had an experience of a similar kind? What happened when you come off the antibiotics? Also, if I had to go back on the Cipro what could be the side effects?

Many thanks,

I have taken ciproflaxin for nearly 13 years now, in rotation with other antibiotics, and can't get off of them. Many others on the board are also antibiotic junkies whose symptoms do not permit them to get off of them. But probiotics ultimately may be a viable alternative for you. It's very early in the treatment game, and until you experiment with other treatments you won't know. Good luck.

I just wanted to post this for those who may not have heard about this:
http://www.webmd.com/news/20080708/fda-warning-cipro-may-rupture-tendons

I understand that alot of people depend on these antibiotics to stay symptom free and the relief they feel shows that bacteria are thought to be behind pouchitis. So, why not launch your own attack on bacteria and try probiotics for an overall healthier for your body approach to see if it could work for you. There is an adjustment period and if your situation allows for some experimentation, you may find a new solution. Best of health to you!

Hi,

Thanks for your responses.