What does a negative stool test mean?
What does a negative stool test mean?
Normal or Negative Results A normal or negative FIT result means that there was no blood found in your stool at the time of the test. • If a stool test is negative, it does not always mean colorectal cancer or colon polyps are not present. That is because these tests can miss polyps and some cancers.
What can cause a false negative stool test?
Your fecal occult blood test could show a negative test result when cancer is present (false-negative result) if your cancer or polyps don’t bleed.
What does a stool test detect?
The stool culture is a test that detects and identifies bacteria that cause infections of the lower digestive tract. The test distinguishes between the types of bacteria that cause disease (pathogenic) and the types that are normally found in the digestive tract (normal flora).
What does a positive stool sample mean?
A positive fecal occult blood test means that blood has been found in the stool. Your doctor will have to determine the source of the bleeding, either by doing a colonoscopy or by doing an examination to determine if the bleeding is coming from the stomach or small intestine.
What does a stool sample rule out?
A stool analysis is a series of tests done on a stool (feces) sample to help diagnose certain conditions affecting the digestive tract. These conditions can include infection (such as from parasites, viruses, or bacteria), poor nutrient absorption, or cancer.
What diseases can a stool sample show?
A stool test can detect many things significant to health: anything from parasite infection to signs of cancer, yeast or bacterial overgrowth, or pathogenic bacteria like C. difficile, Campylobacter and certain strains of E. coli.
How do you know if you have an infection in your intestines?
Some common symptoms of bowel infection include:
- diarrhoea.
- nausea.
- vomiting.
- crampy abdominal pain.
- fever.
- headache.