3 hrs ago
Rare Gastroparesis Leaves 22-Year-Old Vomiting Up to 100 Times
Gastroparesis is a condition in which food moves too slowly out of the stomach.
This can make someone feel full quickly, sick or bloated.
Ella Rake has a severe form of the illness and sometimes vomits up to 100 times in one day.
Because she cannot eat and drink normally, she has lost a lot of weight and become very weak.
Vomiting also makes the body lose water and important minerals such as potassium.
Very low potassium can interfere with the heart’s normal rhythm.
Ella also has a bowel condition that makes it difficult for waste to move through her colon.
Doctors say gastroparesis can have several causes, including diabetes, surgery, nerve damage, some medicines and connective tissue disorders.
Ella Rake, 22, has severe gastroparesis and reportedly vomits up to 100 times a day on her worst days.
She was diagnosed with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome at 18 and later diagnosed with severe gastroparesis.
Frequent vomiting has caused dangerously low potassium, abnormal heart rhythms, dehydration risks and acute kidney injury.
She also has colonic inertia and has experienced bowel obstruction, severe constipation, sepsis and repeated hospital admissions.
Gastroparesis slows stomach emptying and can cause nausea, vomiting, malnutrition, weight loss and electrolyte disturbances.
- Who
- Ella Rake, a 22-year-old woman diagnosed with severe gastroparesis and hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.
- What
- She has severe, debilitating stomach-emptying problems that cause repeated vomiting, rapid weight loss and serious complications.
- Where
- When
- She was diagnosed with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome at 18; the article describes her current condition at age 22.
- Why
- Gastroparesis occurs when the nerves or muscles controlling stomach movement do not work properly; in Ella’s case, the article notes her connective tissue disorder.
Key facts
- Patient
- Ella Rake, 22
- Worst reported vomiting frequency
- Up to 100 times a day
- Related diagnoses
- Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and colonic inertia
- Reported weight
- Just over six stone
- Major complications
- Low potassium, abnormal heart rhythms, bowel obstruction, sepsis and acute kidney injury
- Typical symptoms
- Nausea, repeated vomiting, early fullness, bloating, stomach discomfort and weight loss
- Potential causes
- Diabetes, upper digestive-tract surgery, viral infections, neurological disorders, connective tissue disorders, certain medicines and vagus-nerve damage
Quotes
Ella Rake
A 22-year-old woman living with severe gastroparesis and related health conditions
“Everything with my health has just gradually gone downhill. It is really scary.”
NDTV
Sources
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