Chronic Diarrhea
Some people have diarrhea after undergoing abdominal surgery or gallbladder removal surgery. Other digestive disorders. Chronic diarrhea has a number of other causes, such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, celiac disease, microscopic colitis, and irritable bowel syndrome. Chronic diarrhea is defined as loose stools that last for at least four weeks. This usually means three or more loose stools per day. There are many possible causes of chronic diarrhea. A wide range of problems can cause chronic diarrhea; some of the most common causes include irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn disease and ulcerative colitis), malabsorption syndromes in which food cannot be digested and absorbed, and chronic infections. Most acute episodes of diarrhea are due to viral infections and last three to five days. Prolonged diarrhea — lasting more than four to six weeks — usually is due to an underlying gastrointestinal disease, the most common of which are diseases that cause inflammation and malabsorption of food. Inflammation in the intestinal tract, which can result in chronic diarrhea. … Irritable bowel syndrome, which may cause alternating bouts of diarrhea and constipation. Ischemic bowel disease, which can be caused by blocked arteries. Symptoms might include abdominal pain with bloody diarrhea.