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I had c diff a month ago and was treated by antibiotics, now I'm having abdominal cramps, I feel bloated/gassy and a heart burn. Have you had problems such as GERD post c-diff. I was wondering why acid reflux problems if I'm not a smoker and does not even drink coffee. My pcp prescribed omeprazole for my acid reflux. Any thoughts?

I also have GERD but had it prior to c diff. The medication your dr prescribed, omeprazole, is a PPI, and those have been implicated in making you more prone to c diff because they inhibit the production of stomach acid. You might want to ask your doctor about trying Zantac or Pepcid first since this is a new problem and maybe they will work for you. I don't know that there is any reason to rush to a PPI but it it your decision what to do.

GERD can be caused by many things. If it persists, along with your other complaints, I personally would see a GI dr. Your symptoms may be related to your bout of c diff but could be something else...it's hard to know. A dr has to make that determination.
Be well.
Rita

There have been quite a few posters that I have seen over the years who did not have acid reflux or GERD prior to c difficile, but did afterwards. Doctors will probably say it is not related, but who knows. I don't think that they know enough about how c difficile affects other parts of the body. I would ask the doctor about Pepsid or Zantac as Rita suggested, especially since you just had the c diff recently.

Thank you guys. Actually my doctor is now recommending protonix as the omeprazole is not really helping my symptoms.

Do not think that it can be a connection between Cdiff and GERD , i personally think that the medication used to treat Cdiff can give GERD , especially Flagyl. Agree about switching Omeprazole with Zantac , taking PPI's will expose you to a reoccurrence.

Protonix is also a PPI. Again, ask about Zantac.

There is a lot you can do yourself. See CDI and Acid Reflux. Not going to bed right after eating is important, avoid acid foods.
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If it continues, ask about being tested for H pylori.

Hi Beth! I just did a blood test for h pylori. I will get the results tomorrow. I'm hoping they find the real cause of this uncomfortable feeling. Thank you.

Bobbie wrote:
> Protonix is also a PPI. Again, ask about Zantac.
>
> There is a lot you can do yourself. See CDI and Acid Reflux. Not going to
> bed right after eating is important, avoid acid foods.
> .

Thank you, Bobbie! I'll sure do that. It's just depressing because ever since I had the c diff, I already lost 8 lbs and I wanted to gain my weight back but it's difficult if I'm feeling like this. Again, thank you very much.

Around 50% of blood tests will be positive for H pylori.
They are not much use as a diagnostic tool.

Hi Roy! What other diagnostic test my doctor can do aside from the blood test to confirm if you have H. Pylori?

A breath test to see if it's a current infection, (blood tests also show antibidies from previous infections) then judge if its causing the problem or just sitting harmlessly as part of the normal flora.
Its another of those bugs that is perfectly normal if its not causing illness.

I took the h pylori test, got a positive, took the pylori pack, and that's what gave me C diff. I would not do it again without having an upper endoscopy to confirm it was a problem that required treating.

I had the breath test and it was negative despite having redness in my stomach that was seen with upper endoscopy. There is also a stool test that can detect it. The blood test was positive for me, but upper endoscopy and breath test were negative, so that means it was not an active infection.

Got the results of my blood test and I am negative with the H. Pylori. I was able to convince my doctor to change my meds from omeorazole to Zantac. I took one tonight prior to my dinner and I felt better. I'm just hoping that I'm on my way to a recovery from my C-Diff and this acid reflux. Now I just need to make sure that I don't eat food that will trigger acid reflux.... Thank you guys!