Steatorrhoea Health Dictionary

A condition in which a redundant area or dead end (blind loop) in the small intestine becomes colonized with bacteria.

This results in abnormal faeces and poor absorption of nutrients.

The syndrome may result from surgery or a stricture (narrowing) in the intestine due to a disorder such as Crohn’s disease.

It is characterized by steatorrhoea (pale yellow, foul-smelling, fatty, bulky faeces that are difficult to flush away), tiredness, and weight loss.

Antibiotic drug treatment usually cures the condition.... blind loop syndrome

Adult coeliac disease, coeliac sprue, non-tropical sprue, idiopathic steatorrhoea. Allergy to gluten which disturbs the small intestine by preventing the body from absorbing food nutrients. A child’s condition may worsen when put on solid cereals containing wheat, barley, rye or oats. “Allergic to pasta” disease. A change in the mucous membrane of the intestines with enzyme deficiency.

Symptoms: diarrhoea, abdominal swelling and pain, irritability, inability to gain weight, neuritis, ulcers on tongue and mouth, low blood pressure, debility, lactase-deficiency. Breast-feeding stops coeliac disease.

Alternatives. Tea. Mix, equal parts: Raspberry leaves, Agrimony, Lemon Balm. 2 teaspoons to each cup boiling water; infuse 15 minutes. 1 cup freely.

Tablets/capsules. Goldenseal, Slippery Elm. Calamus. Fenugreek seeds, Papaya. Wild Yam.

Powders, Liquid Extracts, Tinctures. Formula. Equal parts: Sarsaparilla, Wild Yam, Stone root. Dose. Powders: 500mg (two 00 capsules or one-third teaspoon). Liquid Extracts: 30-60 drops. Tinctures: 1-2 teaspoons. In water, banana mash or honey, thrice daily.

Papaya (papain) digests wheat gluten and assists recovery. Half-1g with meals.

Aloe Vera juice. Promotes improved bowel motility, increases stool specific gravity, and reduces indication of protein putrefaction, flatulence and bloating after meals. (J. Bland PhD. JAM June 1985, p.11)

Topical. Warm hip baths of Lemon Balm, Chamomile, etc. (Alfred Vogel)

Diet. Gluten-free. Rice. Unpasteurised yoghurt. Buttermilk. Sweet acidophilus milk. Raw carrot juice. Bananas mashed with a little Slippery Elm or dried milk powder, carob bean powder and Soya milk. Supplementation. Vitamins A, B-complex, B6, B12, Folic acid, C, D, E, K (Alfalfa tea). Calcium, Iron and Magnesium orotates. ... gluten-sensitive disease

A rare disorder, also called intestinal lipodystrophy, that can affect many organs. Symptoms include steatorrhoea as a result of malabsorption, abdominal pain, joint pains, progressive weight loss, swollen lymph nodes, anaemia, and fever. The heart, lungs, and brain can also be affected. The condition is most common in middle-aged men.

The cause is thought to be bacterial; affected tissues are found to contain macrophages (a type of scavenging cell) containing rod-shaped bacteria. Treatment is with antibiotic drugs for at least 1 year. Dietary supplements are used to correct nutritional deficiencies occurring as a result of malabsorption.... whipple’s disease

(lambliasis) n. a disease caused by the parasitic protozoan Giardia lamblia in the small intestine. Individuals become infected by eating food contaminated with cysts containing the parasite. Symptoms include diarrhoea, nausea, bellyache, and flatulence, as well as the passage of pale fatty stools (steatorrhoea). Large numbers of the parasite may interfere with the absorption of food through the gut wall. The disease occurs throughout the world and is particularly common in children; it responds well to oral doses of *metronidazole.... giardiasis

n. reduced or defective absorption of various nutrients in the small bowel. It commonly affects the absorption of fatty acids (causing *steatorrhoea, *bloating, and *flatulence), fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K), water-soluble vitamins (B12 and folate), *electrolytes (such as calcium and potassium), iron, and amino acids. Symptoms include weight loss, diarrhoea, failure to thrive, weakness and lethargy (due to *anaemia), *paraesthesia, swelling (oedema), and a propensity to bleeding. The commonest causes are *coeliac disease, *Crohn’s disease, *pancreatitis, *cystic fibrosis, *blind loop syndrome, chronic infection (e.g. giardiasis), and previous surgery.... malabsorption

(PERT) a therapeutic approach using supplements of the digestive enzymes lipase, amylase, and protease (Creon, Pancrex), which are given when there is insufficient endogenous production of pancreatic enzymes: for example, to patients with pancreatic cancer or cystic fibrosis. The capsules must be taken with all meals and snacks to be effective. PERT treats the symptoms of *steatorrhoea.... pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy

n. a rare tumour of the *islets of Langerhans that produces excessive amounts of somatostatin. It is an example of an *apudoma. In severe cases it can cause the somatostatinoma syndrome, consisting of diabetes, gall-bladder disease, and *steatorrhoea due to malabsorption.... somatostatinoma

(psilosis) n. impaired absorption of food due to disease of the small intestine. Tropical sprue is seen in people from temperate regions who move to the tropics. It is characterized by diarrhoea (usually *steatorrhoea), an inflamed tongue (glossitis), anaemia, and weight loss; the lining of the small intestine becomes inflamed and atrophied, leading to vitamin and micronutrient deficiencies. Its cause is unknown, but infection is most likely. Treatment with antibiotics and *folic acid is usually effective, but the condition often improves spontaneously on return to a temperate climate. See also coeliac disease; malabsorption.... sprue