# no Laxative abuse????



## gottogo (Aug 14, 2000)

When I had my follow-up appointment with the doctor after my colonoscopy, he told me that my colon showed signs of laxative abuse. Now this is strange since I do not take any laxatives. Has anyone else had such a problem like this happen too?


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## linesse (Sep 18, 2000)

Hi gottago,No, I don't have this, but may I ask...? What are the signs?Thanks...+ good luck.


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## linesse (Sep 18, 2000)

Hi gottago,No, I don't have this, but may I ask...? What are the signs?Thanks...+ good luck.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

I remember something about on colonoscopy there can be a certain coloration of the colon lining seen in people that use laxatives very regularly....I'll see if I can find that info....From www.merck.com


> quote: Overzealous treatment with laxatives can result in cathartic colon (a "pipe stem" colon lacking haustra on barium enema examination, thus mimicking ulcerative colitis) and melanosis coli (deposits of brown pigment in the mucosa, seen on endoscopy and colonic biopsy).


Almost everything I can find say this is most commonly seen in people who use laxatives (this includes herbs such as senna and cascara segunda...do you use any herbal preparations that may not SAY laxative but are for digestion and contain these herbs?)Found this abstract:Apoptosis is programmed cell death which occurs for many reasons.


> quote: Histopathology 1997 Feb;30(2):160-4	Related Articles, Books, LinkOut Melanosis coli is associated with an increase in colonic epithelial apoptosis and not with laxative use.Byers RJ, Marsh P, Parkinson D, Haboubi NY.Department of Pathological Sciences, University of Manchester, UK.We have investigated the clinical presentation, laxative use and histopathology of 38 patients with a histological diagnosis of melanosis coli and measured the colonic epithelial apoptosis in these cases. The presence of lipofuscin was confirmed in all cases. Fifteen of the cases had constipation, whilst eight had diarrhoea. Neither constipation nor diarrhoea was present in 13 cases and both were present, at different times, in two. Laxatives had been used in all those with constipation, in only one with diarrhoea and in none of the others. The mean apoptotic count was significantly increased in those with melanosis coli compared with the controls. In the majority of cases with constipation there was no other abnormality, whilst an additional diagnosis was present in the majority of the remainder. Colonic epithelial apoptosis was increased in melanosis coli and the majority of cases were not associated with laxative use. These results support the proposed role of apoptosis in melanosis coli, but indicate that melanosis coli is a non-specific marker of increased apoptosis with many possible causes, of which the use of laxatives is only one.


Don't have the abstract so I don't know what this person was taking


> quote: Am J Gastroenterol 1993 Jun;88(6):971Melanosis coli: a consequence of "alternative therapy" for psoriasis.Bertram PD.


So there can be other causes.K.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

I remember something about on colonoscopy there can be a certain coloration of the colon lining seen in people that use laxatives very regularly....I'll see if I can find that info....From www.merck.com


> quote: Overzealous treatment with laxatives can result in cathartic colon (a "pipe stem" colon lacking haustra on barium enema examination, thus mimicking ulcerative colitis) and melanosis coli (deposits of brown pigment in the mucosa, seen on endoscopy and colonic biopsy).


Almost everything I can find say this is most commonly seen in people who use laxatives (this includes herbs such as senna and cascara segunda...do you use any herbal preparations that may not SAY laxative but are for digestion and contain these herbs?)Found this abstract:Apoptosis is programmed cell death which occurs for many reasons.


> quote: Histopathology 1997 Feb;30(2):160-4	Related Articles, Books, LinkOut Melanosis coli is associated with an increase in colonic epithelial apoptosis and not with laxative use.Byers RJ, Marsh P, Parkinson D, Haboubi NY.Department of Pathological Sciences, University of Manchester, UK.We have investigated the clinical presentation, laxative use and histopathology of 38 patients with a histological diagnosis of melanosis coli and measured the colonic epithelial apoptosis in these cases. The presence of lipofuscin was confirmed in all cases. Fifteen of the cases had constipation, whilst eight had diarrhoea. Neither constipation nor diarrhoea was present in 13 cases and both were present, at different times, in two. Laxatives had been used in all those with constipation, in only one with diarrhoea and in none of the others. The mean apoptotic count was significantly increased in those with melanosis coli compared with the controls. In the majority of cases with constipation there was no other abnormality, whilst an additional diagnosis was present in the majority of the remainder. Colonic epithelial apoptosis was increased in melanosis coli and the majority of cases were not associated with laxative use. These results support the proposed role of apoptosis in melanosis coli, but indicate that melanosis coli is a non-specific marker of increased apoptosis with many possible causes, of which the use of laxatives is only one.


Don't have the abstract so I don't know what this person was taking


> quote: Am J Gastroenterol 1993 Jun;88(6):971Melanosis coli: a consequence of "alternative therapy" for psoriasis.Bertram PD.


So there can be other causes.K.


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## Rose (Mar 25, 1999)

I know that melanosis coli is a discoloration of the colon..usually a blackened color rather than the normal "pink" color...but what is "colonic epithelial apoptosis?"


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## Rose (Mar 25, 1999)

I know that melanosis coli is a discoloration of the colon..usually a blackened color rather than the normal "pink" color...but what is "colonic epithelial apoptosis?"


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Colonic= of the colonEpithelial=the lining (epithelial cells are cells lining something).Apoptosis=programmed cell death.Cells, when they are not needed, have a mechanism by which they, in essence, commit suicide. Various things signal this. If a cell is damaged it may undergo apoptosis rather than continuing on in a damaged state until it dies or damages things around it (necrosis is also cell death, but it is generally not an orderly shut down of the cell). Apoptotic cells generally die quietly and cause minimal mess around them and are generally cleaned up fairly easily.When your hands form at first they look like paddles. The webbing between the fingers undergoes apoptosis to separate the fingers once they are formed.In some cases part of what appears to go wrong in cancerous cells is that they lose the ability to undergo apoptosis and so live and multiply well past the time they should have died. As they continue to multiply when damaged they become more and more abnormal.I do not know, and the abstracts didn't really say much, about what all mechanisms cause apoptosis in the cells lining the colon, but it appears that laxatives are one of the things that do this and that is why you see this in laxative overuse.K.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Colonic= of the colonEpithelial=the lining (epithelial cells are cells lining something).Apoptosis=programmed cell death.Cells, when they are not needed, have a mechanism by which they, in essence, commit suicide. Various things signal this. If a cell is damaged it may undergo apoptosis rather than continuing on in a damaged state until it dies or damages things around it (necrosis is also cell death, but it is generally not an orderly shut down of the cell). Apoptotic cells generally die quietly and cause minimal mess around them and are generally cleaned up fairly easily.When your hands form at first they look like paddles. The webbing between the fingers undergoes apoptosis to separate the fingers once they are formed.In some cases part of what appears to go wrong in cancerous cells is that they lose the ability to undergo apoptosis and so live and multiply well past the time they should have died. As they continue to multiply when damaged they become more and more abnormal.I do not know, and the abstracts didn't really say much, about what all mechanisms cause apoptosis in the cells lining the colon, but it appears that laxatives are one of the things that do this and that is why you see this in laxative overuse.K.


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## Rose (Mar 25, 1999)

Thanks.


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## Rose (Mar 25, 1999)

Thanks.


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## gottogo (Aug 14, 2000)

There were no symptoms to this. It was just what my GI doctor said to me on a follow up visit from having a colonoscopy.I do not use laxatives at all. So it was quite strange to hear something like that.


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## gottogo (Aug 14, 2000)

There were no symptoms to this. It was just what my GI doctor said to me on a follow up visit from having a colonoscopy.I do not use laxatives at all. So it was quite strange to hear something like that.


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## linesse (Sep 18, 2000)

ThanksWeird huh, gottogo?


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## linesse (Sep 18, 2000)

ThanksWeird huh, gottogo?


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## gottogo (Aug 14, 2000)

linesse,its very weird


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## gottogo (Aug 14, 2000)

linesse,its very weird


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