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Crohn's Disease
Are you looking for ? What Is Crohn’s Disease?Crohn’s Disease is an inflammatory condition, which can affect any part of the intestinal tract from mouth to anus. It most frequently affects the end of the small intestine where it joins with the colon (large intestine). The next most common place of inflammation is the anus. What Causes Crohn’s Disease?The cause of Crohn’s disease is not known. There is quite strong evidence that some kind of bacterium plays a part in Crohn’s disease. Can I Inherit Crohn’s Disease?Crohn’s disease is not a hereditary condition. However if somebody in your family has Crohn’s disease you have a slightly greater than average chance of getting it yourself. What Happens If I Get Crohn’s Disease?Most of the symptoms from Crohn’s disease are due to the effects of inflammation. Symptoms of Crohn’s Disease
How Do I Know If I Have Crohn’s Disease?Crohn’s disease is diagnosed by a combination of listening to your symptoms, physical examination, and investigation of the bowel by x-ray and/or colonoscopy and biopsies. A Pathologist examining a sample of inflamed Crohn’s disease tissue under the microscope may confirm the diagnosis. How Is Crohn’s Disease Treated?Treatment depends on symptoms. Inflammation of the intestine or colon responds to an anti-inflammatory drug called 5-Aminosalicylic acid, which is found in Salazopyrine, Pentasa, Dipentum, and Asacol. Inflammation outside the intestine requires more potent anti-inflammatory drugs including steroids (Prednisone) and immune-suppressing drugs such as Azathioprine (Imuran). Recently there has been some evidence that fish oil is useful to reduce inflammation in the intestine. Sometimes drugs alone cannot control Crohn’s disease and surgical methods must be used. Abscesses should be drained surgically. Occasionally it is necessary to remove a portion of intestine, which is badly affected by Crohn’s disease, but your Surgeon will endeavour to preserve as much intestine as possible if this becomes necessary. Where Can I Found Out More About Crohn’s Disease?The Canterbury Crohn’s and Colitis Support Group are very active and have a large amount of information. They can be contacted at: P O Box 2568 There is also a large amount of information available on the Internet. We recommend that you are careful about your source of information because there is a great deal of misleading information published on the Internet. Relevant Links
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