Medications for Severe Spastic Colons

Spastic colon, or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), is a condition of the colon in which you might suffer from either diarrhea or constipation, or both in some cases. It is also characterized by severe abdominal pain and cramps, along with a feeling of fullness or bloating in the abdominal area. The symptoms can come at the most inopportune of times, especially when traveling or making changes. Most of the time, certain lifestyle changes and even focusing on problem foods and relieving stress can help relieve the symptoms somewhat, but in some patients, the symptoms may be so severe and life-crippling that they need medications to help give some relief.

Anti-Diarrheal Meds

• If you have diarrhea that doesn't go away, and it becomes a problem with everyday functioning, you may need to take medication to help it go away. Your doctor may have you try Imodium, Kaopectate or Lomotil, which can all be bought over the counter. Lotronex is another anti-diarrheal prescription medication, but it is reserved for the most severe cases that have not been helped otherwise because it may have adverse effects on your body. It will help to relieve the diarrhea, but it is possible that you could become extremely constipated while taking Lotronex, or the blood flow to your colon could become compromised. Lotronex has been approved by the FDA only for use in women, as they have not done enough studies to be able to approve it for men.

Meds for Constipation

• Certain fiber supplements, like Citrucel or Metamucil, can be taken if constipation is a problem. Over-the-counter laxatives may also be advised by your doctor. However, if the constipation becomes so severe as to interfere with life events, your doctor may prescribe a medication called Amitiza. Amitiza is an anti-constipation medicine that has been approved only for women. It helps by raising the amount of fluids that are secreted in the small intestine, thus helping to keep things moving along within the colon.

Antispasmodic Meds

• Certain medicines also help to relieve spasms in the colon, which lead to cramps and pain in the abdomen. These medications include hyoscyamine and dicyclomine. In order to relieve the spasms, these medications help the intestine to slow down just a bit.

Antidepressant Meds

• Since IBS can so often be provoked by stress and emotional changes, antidepressant medications may help to relieve symptoms in patients, especially patients in whom depression may be a symptom associated with their IBS. If your symptoms mainly include diarrhea and pain in your abdomen, your doctor may prescribe imipramine or amitriptyline. If you have more constipation and pain in your abdomen, he or she may prescribe fluoxetine or paroxetine. The use of these medications needs to be monitored carefully by your doctor, so it's very important that you report any abnormal or adverse effects you may have while on these medications.

Relaxant Meds

• If you are taking antidepressant or antispasmodic medications, you may have side effects from the meds. Your constipation symptoms could become more severe. Your doctor may prescribe medications to help the muscles in your colon and bladder to relax. These medications include Donnapine or Librax. Since these two medications do have a sedative in them, your doctor needs to especially monitor you while taking them, because you could become addicted.