Liquid Stool - Orange

[AggieNurse99]

in clinicals today; needed stool sample from a pt w/ n/v/abd pain; labwork, xray unremarkable. it seriously was bright orange and liquid. can't find much info in my textbooks or on the web. never seen nor heard of it. any ideas? pt already had gallbladder out, appy. thanks!

[flightnurse2b, LPN]

my guess would be one of these:

-pt is taking weight loss supplement or eating diet foods containing olestra

-giardia

-short gut syndrome

-c. diff

-vitamin a tox. due to some kind of malabsorption

-chronic liver dz

[meownsmile, BSN, RN]

Hold that thought on the meds.

Google post cholecystectomy syndrome.

People who have had surgery develop symptoms as described. The stools are frequently yellow to orange depending on how long it has been since they ate and how much bile is in the common duct and is released when the sphincter of odie is open by eating.

It is a group of symptoms. I have seen people hospitalized for symptoms that are indeed this same thing. I have printed off information for the patient after approving it with the doctor and the patient hasnt ever been readmitted. Usually im thanked that someone told them what was going on because it is a real life interrupter and the doctors dont warn patients about it. Oh and i do suffer from it myself so i knew what to look for. But with some adjustments and changes the patient can live with it and manage it.

It could be that isnt the case with this patient, but from the sound of it, with the history of a chole, im guessing im on target.

[elizabells, BSN, RN]

I've read anecdotal accounts of certain types of fish causing liquid orange stools. One is called Escolar, or Hawaiian Butterfish.

[Ohmygosh]

Well...since this is a private forum and only us professionals read this stuff I'll share my interesting stool event.

I recently started a low calorie diet that includes drinking lots of water. Water drinking is tough for me because plain ole' water makes me nauseated. So I decided to use those little Crystal Light singles. I really love the lemonade flavor -but decided to expand my horizons and try a few different flavors. I found a new flavor "fruit punch"... it tastes great...I drank lots and lots of water flavored with it. And lost a few pounds too. Anyway...I go to the bathroom one day and "OH MY GOSH" --- the entire toilet is blood RED!!--OH crap --I have a GI Bleed....What the heck...I feel fine...Actually never felt better. It took a few minutes before I realized what had happened....the Fruit Punch is very very RED. Yep--it has dyed my stool red ....Sheesh what a relief. :smackingf So....I have bared my soul to say perhaps your patient has found a new Crystal Light flavor I dont know about. BWT...I love oranges!!!:lol_hitti

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I was on a very low-calorie diet about 7 years ago. When I used the bathroom, I observed that my stool had these orange-colored fatty globules that would float to the top of the toilet bowl (oil and water don't mix). About 24 hours previously, I had also eaten fat-free potato chips that were prepared with a nationally known fat substitute which will I will not name. The potato chip container had a disclaimer regarding diarrhea. Hmmm...

[Miami NightNurse]

Yeah Commuter is right those fat free potatoe chips can cause that. But Xenical is the worst for that Orange Liquid Stool. I looked it up and didn't see that in the side effects So I'll just admit I took Xenical for weightloss years ago and everytime I ate something with fat I had orange oil in my stool. The more fat you ate the more liquid orange stool which by the way will not give you any warning so it becomes like antabuse for an alcoholic. You are very careful not to eat anything with fat in it, carefully checking every label in the grocery store. Because you are scared to death to eat anything with fat or the orange liquid will seep out unexpectantly and without warning. Yes it's gross

[banditrn]

Yeah Commuter is right those fat free potatoe chips can cause that. But Xenical is the worst for that Orange Liquid Stool. I looked it up and didn't see that in the side effects So I'll just admit I took Xenical for weightloss years ago and everytime I ate something with fat I had orange oil in my stool. The more fat you ate the more liquid orange stool which by the way will not give you any warning so it becomes like antabuse for an alcoholic. You are very careful not to eat anything with fat in it, carefully checking every label in the grocery store. Because you are scared to death to eat anything with fat or the orange liquid will seep out unexpectantly and without warning. Yes it's gross

Well, that does it for me! I was at the doctor's the other day and asked him about 'Alli' and he said it would be OK to take.

Nope, just changed my mind!

[nrsman1]

Pyridium in the only medication that I can think of right off the top of my head. But it turns urines bright orange, never heard of it doing that to stool.

[BlueRidgeHomeRN]

also, had they eaten anything that was orange? was it mucusy at all...did it have a strong/strange odor? my first thought was c-diff or some strange bacteria dude...

c-diff was my immediate thought, too!

[CHATSDALE]

c-diff?? remember the transplant stool thread, my dd still laughs about that

[Antikigirl, ASN, RN]

Okay side note here too...My hubby (paramedic) and I had this running joke for years. He would come home and we would discuss anything cool that happened that day. Of course he would have tales of intubation, code saves and the lot...and I would simply have...well had a patient with c-diff that almost made me throw up when I had to change them...or did a return flow enema with sucess! LOL! You can imagine that my husband really teases me about dealing with poop all day!!!

So THIS valentines day he got me this funny book. "What's your poop telling you?" At first I thought...ewwwww gross! But I started to read it and didn't put it down till all 95 short pages were read...I was laughing so hard I could barely stand it! The book has a first part in all chapters on different bm's...what the slang is for it and a funny story about its occurances...then there is actual facts in the second part that have been tastefully (oh did I just use that word!) done by an MD..with a little humor mixed in to break up the scientific fact for laymen.

I looked up the area on colored poo's...chapter called, "Camouflage Poo" and it did have a chart on different colors. Yellow was the closest and did relate to fats being expelled into the lower bowels either by medications or liver/gallbladder probelms where fat is not being managed and leaks through.

Anywhoooooo...thought it was a funny book, my GI MD's went out and got them for their office lobby's!!!! LOL!!!!!!! Nurses cringed at first, opened the book and did exactly what I did...read on laughing!

[AggieNurse99, BSN, RN]

Thanks so much everyone! Pt reports using Alli for wt loss. I appreciate everyones input; this was a stumper.