Which type of diarrhea is associated with large-volume watery stools that persist with fasting?

Which type of diarrhea is associated with large-volume watery stools that persist with fasting?

• A. Secretory.
• B. Absorptive.
• C. Motility.
• D. Mixed.

Answer: (A)

Secretory diarrhea is driven by active secretion of water and electrolytes into the intestinal lumen, so the stool stays large in volume and watery even when you don’t eat. This persistence with fasting happens because the secretory process continues independently of meals—for example, toxins like cholera or certain hormones such as VIP can cause this ongoing secretion. Osmotic diarrhea, by contrast, decreases when fasting because the nonabsorbable solutes that draw water into the gut aren’t present without food. Motility-related diarrhea can vary with meals and isn’t defined by a persistent, high-volume watery output during fasting in the same way. So the pattern described—large-volume watery stools that persist with fasting—points to secretory diarrhea.

Secretory diarrhea is driven by active secretion of water and electrolytes into the intestinal lumen, so the stool stays large in volume and watery even when you don’t eat. This persistence with fasting happens because the secretory process continues independently of meals—for example, toxins like cholera or certain hormones such as VIP can cause this ongoing secretion. Osmotic diarrhea, by contrast, decreases when fasting because the nonabsorbable solutes that draw water into the gut aren’t present without food. Motility-related diarrhea can vary with meals and isn’t defined by a persistent, high-volume watery output during fasting in the same way. So the pattern described—large-volume watery stools that persist with fasting—points to secretory diarrhea.