Here is what you need to know about Crohn's disease

Here is what you need to know about Crohn’s disease

Introduction to Crohn’s disease

Crohn’s disease usually affects the ileum which is the lower part of the small intestine. From mouth to anus, Crohn’s disease can affect any part of the intestine or digestive tract. Crohn’s disease causes inflammation and empty the intestines frequently and cause resulting in diarrhea.

A type of inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn’s disease can be difficult because it has similar symptoms to other types of intestine’s infection. It is closely similar to ulcerative colitis. This causes ulceration to the top layer of inner lining of the large intestine.

With the introduction of Crohn’s disease in the body, the very first symptom that a person might experience is abdominal pain. The pain is often experienced in the lower right area of the stomach. The abdominal pain is usually followed by diarrhea.

Diagnosis
The introduction of Crohn’s disease can be diagnosed through blood tests. If blood tests results show high white blood cell count in the body, it might be an indication of inflammation somewhere in the body. Further stool tests will confirm I there is bleeding or infection in the intestine.

For further confirmation the doctors might do an upper GI. In this test the doctor will ask the patient to drink barium water. Barium water is a chalky solution that coats the inner lining of the small intestine. As a result, the intestines (lined with barium) shows up in the X-rays which will reveal any abnormalities in the intestines.

Complications
The complications that might arise due to introduction of Crohn’s disease in the body is the blockage in the intestines. The blockage occurs because the disease thickens the walls of the intestines. As a result, Crohn’s disease might also cause sores and ulcers in the intestines in the surrounding tissues such the bladder and in its surrounding skin. It is not possible to predict the remission of the disease; hence a proper treatment is always advisable.

Treatment
Most of the people go with drug therapy as a first measure of treatment. Anti-inflammatory drugs are usually the first step towards the treatment. Corticosteroids can help reduce inflammation. These drugs are only prescribed by doctors as they don’t work for everyone. They are used on a short-term basis to induce remission. They are used as a combination with another immune suppressor.

Immune suppressors are administered to target the immune system which causes inflammation. It works better as one drug alone for some people, while for the rest might use a combination of drugs prescribed by a doctor.

Antibiotics can sometimes heal fistulas and reduce the amount of drainage caused due to Crohn’s disease. Although there are antibiotics that boost your intestinal immune system which in turn lead to inflammation.

For mild to moderate cases, some doctors may prescribe nutrition therapy. They recommend a special diet which is fed via a tube or given intravenously. This therapy improves your overall nutrition and eases your bowel. This in turn reduces inflammation.

If all of the above-mentioned treatments fail to fetch any results, the doctors might recommend surgery. Sticking to medication post-surgery is the best option to avoid the risk of reoccurrence.