Chronic Duodenitis… without a known cause???
Hi everyone.. I could really do with some of your advice please 
- I’m 32M
- Had flu in December/January
- Shingles for the first time in mid February, in my face/head, was highly stressed because of it and slept very little in a period of 4-5 days
- Mid March, woke up in the middle of the night while on holiday in Japan with an “impending doom” feeling/queasiness, started to pant for air for a minute or two, very sweaty but was cold, heart rate slow. Following day I had upper abdominal discomfort and didn’t feel right but it went away, until:
- 1 week later while still in Japan, happened again middle of the night. Following 1-2 days again had upper abdominal discomfort and didn’t eat much.
- Returned to UK 1st April, was mostly fine for 3 weeks.
- End of April, started getting constant indigestion and upper abdominal discomfort, and it got bad quick, to the point where eating would make me pant for air, sweat, and my stomach felt so distended..
- Saw a doctor beginning of May, diagnosed with ulcer and/or gastritis. Prescribed Lansoprazole 30mg for 1 month.
- Took the Lansoprazole for a month and eventually felt better but some days were better than others.
- Stopped the PPI at beginning of June while I waited to see a Gastroenterologist, expecting him to test for H Pylori.
- Took Famotidine 40mg nightly in the meantime.
- June 19th, had a gastroscopy. Found “mild duodenitis with a few tiny erosions”. Stomach and esophagus normal. Doc took biopsies to test for H Pylori, Coeliac and Eosinophilic Infiltration.
- All biopsies came back negative.
- H Pylori breath test came back negative.
- I went back on PPI 2 days after gastroscopy on 21 June, for 2 weeks, stopping it first week of July, because I was getting stinging in my abdomen for a few seconds at a time, and pulsing on left side of head between ear and eye and I thought it was the PPI, so took blood tests to check for deficiencies.. Haven’t got the results yet.
- Been eating very bland last couple of weeks, avoiding any milk based food or drinks also. And even avoiding gluten.
- Was mostly fine off meds for these 8/9 days, but appetite wasn’t back and I was getting bloated no matter what I ate.
- Yesterday things took a turn for the worst and the abdominal pain returned, leaving me unable to eat and bedbound.
- Restarted the PPI this morning.
Another gastro I spoke to thinks it’s a functional issue and that I might just have to stay on PPIs if I’m more comfortable on them…
But I just don’t get it. I’m a healthy guy. I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, I don’t do drugs, I don’t take NSAIDs, I don’t eat spicy food, I had a generally good diet, and went to the gym regularly before all this started. There HAS to be a cause to this and a resolution..
Medical history:
- Spleen removed at age 13 due to trauma, but have small accessory spleen so not on long term antibiotics
- Bloating since teen years whenever I eat onion, peas, pears, apples, chickpeas, beans, so I’ve tried to avoid these. Periods of constipation for weeks or months at a time since teenage years. Could be IBS.
- Anxiety, mainly social, but also health anxiety especially last few months since Shingles
- POTS since teenage years
I know this is a lot to read, I’m sorry. I’m just hoping for advice, or looking to find someone who went through this and managed to heal completely… I need hope. I’ve lost 7kg in weight so far and all the muscle I worked for years to gain. It’s affected my work and my mental health. I feel so bad for my partner.