“Can antibiotics cause diarrhea 2 weeks after taking them?”
I finished taking antibiotics 2 weeks ago. Today I have diarrhea. Can antibiotics cause diarrhea 2 weeks after taking them?
6 Answers
Yes
Yes you can develop an infection called Clostridium dificil colitis which is an antibiotic associated diarrhea.
Antibiotics may be associated with diarrhea for a number of different reasons. Use may be associated with diarrhea as a side effect. In addition, certain antibiotics may alter bacterial populations in the colon; allowing certain pathogenic (diarrhea causing ones) to overpopulate. An example of this would be clostridium difficile infection which may occur during or after discontinuation of certain antibiotics. If diarrhea or abdominal pain persists one should seek attention with a provider who can test for this in the stool.
Yes, antibiotics may change your biome, therefore causing diarrhea. Another thing that I will look for is C Diff colitis, which can be dangerous. Please call your primary care doctor who can order specific tests.
Yes, they can. If the diarrhea doesn’t get better, stool samples should be checked to rule out clostridium difficile toxin associated colitis, which may develop in some cases up to as long as 6 months after antibiotic exposure in some patients.
Unlikely if the diarrhea only started 2 weeks after stopping the antibiotics. If antibiotics caused the diarrhea, then it would start while the meds are being taken and would not start 2 weeks later.
