A 52-Year-Old Man Comes to the Office Due to Diarrhea

question 368

Multiple Choice

A 52-year-old man comes to the office due to diarrhea.  For the past 3 months, he has had loose, brown, watery stools 4 or 5 times a day; it is associated with postprandial bloating.  The patient has no vomiting, melena, hematochezia, or unexpected weight changes.  He was diagnosed 10 years ago with systemic sclerosis, which presented with sclerodactyly and Raynaud phenomenon.  The patient does not use tobacco, alcohol, or illicit drugs.  The abdomen is visibly distended but nontender and without rebound or guarding.  His symptoms dramatically improve after treatment with oral antibiotics.  Which of the following is most likely responsible for this patient's diarrhea?

• A)Defective structure of apoproteins
• B)Impaired pancreatic enzyme release
• C)Maldigestion in the intestinal lumen
• D)Pancreatic enzyme inactivation

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Definitions:

Monopolistic Producer

A market structure where a single producer has the exclusive control over the production and sale of a particular good or service.

Unit Cost Data

Information related to the cost required to produce one unit of a product or service, including materials, labor, and overhead expenses.

Single-Price Monopoly

A monopolistic market structure where the monopolist charges the same price for every unit of the product sold to every consumer.