People usually interchange the use of Irritable Bowel Disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome—however; these diseases are not actually one and the same. These diseases are two separate conditions distinct from one another. Irritable Bowel Disease is a term used to describe two inflammatory diseases of the colon, namely: ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s Disease. These two conditions, although they are considered under an umbrella of colon inflammations, these also have unique characteristics which one need to be aware of.
It is recorded that at least one million people in the US suffer from Irritable Bowel Disease. IBD commonly affects people in their adolescents and early adulthood (i.e. people aging 15 to 30 years old). However, it can also occur in younger people and the elder group. In terms of geographical statistics, most of the recorded cases are found in the US and European countries.
Getting relief from IBD is important because prolonged and unmanaged Irritable Bowel Disease can lead to complications like dehydration, malnutrition, hormonal problems and other conditions with a systematic effect on health. Maintaining good hydration status, eating nutritious foods as well as knowing and avoiding foods which trigger IBD attacks is very important in steering away from the exacerbation of such condition.
Signs of Irritable Bowel Disease
Most common signs of Irritable Bowel Disease are abdominal cramps and pain, urgency and frequency of bowel movement, and sometimes diarrhea can contain traces of blood. Loss of appetite and subsequent weight loss may also occur. Also, with blood loss through the stool, anemia can occur when it becomes chronic and unmanaged.
anti-inflammatory medications since the main problem is inflammation. Drug treatment will start with the mildest form of drug and if it fails to provide relief, the next more potent drugs will be prescribed. Aminosalicylate drugs and antibiotics may be given first. Next set of drugs that may be given are corticosteroids to provide rapid relief from the inflammation symptoms significantly.
If in case corticosteroids still won’t manage the disease, immune modifying drugs may be required. These immune modifying drugs will lessen the sensitivity of the immune response to triggers since many cases of IBD can be traced into auto-immune causes, i.e. the body targets its own healthy cells.
Complications of Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Intestinal Obstructions and Strictures are common complications of IBD. Since IBD can damage the intestinal walls, scarring of the intestines may occur. When the intestines scar, it may lead to fibrosis of the surface leading to obstruction in the intima of the intestinal walls. Surgical interventions may be required to fix these occurrences.
Anal fistula can also take place at any point. Fistulas are abnormal passages of the intestines opening into another organ like the bladder, perineum, etc. Malignancy is also a high risk for a person with IBD. When a person suffers from ulcerative colitis, the risk for developing colon cancer significantly increases after 8-10 years.
IBD can lead to many other complications… as such, getting treated the earliest moment possible is important.
source: healblog.net
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