Current medical status: for the last 7 days i have had diarrhea, the first day i was ill i was sick alot and nearly passed out. now i can only just start eating dry toast, but still have diarrhea, alot of wind, smelly poo .
Current medical treatment: my doctor has sent off a stool sample to check for bacteria, not on any medication, as she thinks its viral.



“Stomach flu” or viral gastroenteritis is a highly contagious intestinal infection caused by several different viruses (Rotavirus in around 90% of diarrheal cases, Adenovirus, etc). It’s the second most common acute illness worldwide. Most of the viral infections make us feel very weak. Your doctor probably asked for a stool sample to test for Rotavirus or to rule out bacteria (with a stool culture) or parasites (under microscope), as possible causes of your symptoms. No routine tests are currently available for the other types of viruses. This condition should not last longer than 7-10 days and it’s usually self-limiting. The most important symptomatic (as there is no causative) treatment is to prevent dehydration by drinking plenty of tea (with salt! and sugar) or commercial rehydration solutions, restrictive diet (eat only dry toast and boiled plain rice with the water), and maybe add probiotic capsules (such as Lactobacillus acidophilus) to recover your normal intestinal flora. If stool results show anything, your doctor might add antibiotics to the treatment.