Inflammatory bowel

Disease

Marta Ramos
Guillermo Villalonga
NMT 1713
 Objectives
• What Is Inflammatory Bowel Disease?
• Ulcerative colitis
• Crohn's disease
• What Causes It?
• What Are the Signs and Symptoms?
• How Is It Diagnosed?
• How Is It Treated?
 What Is
Inflammatory Bowel
Disease?
 Inflammatory bowel
disease refers to two
chronic diseases that
cause inflammation of
the intestines:
 Ulcerative colitis
and Crohn's
disease. Although
the diseases have
some features in
common, there are
some important
differences.
 Inflammation bowel disease is
not the same thing as irritable
bowel syndrome, or IBS.
 Ulcerative colitis
Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory disease of the
large intestine, also called the colon:
 In ulcerative colitis, the inner lining - or mucosa - of
the intestine becomes inflamed (meaning the lining of
the intestinal wall reddens and swells) and develops
ulcers (an ulcer is a sore, which means it's an open,
painful wound).
 Ulcerative colitis is often the most severe in the rectal
area, which can cause frequent diarrhea. Mucus and
blood often appear in the stool if the lining of the colon
is damaged.
Ulcerative collitis
 Crohn's Disease
 Crohn's disease differs from ulcerative colitis in the areas
of the bowel it involves - it most commonly affects the
last part of the small intestine (called the terminal ileum)
and parts of the large intestine.
 However, Crohn's disease isn't limited to these areas
and can attack any part of the digestive tract.
 Crohn's disease causes inflammation that extends much
deeper into the layers of the intestinal wall than
ulcerative colitis does.
 Crohn's disease generally tends to involve the entire
bowel wall, whereas ulcerative colitis affects only the
lining of the bowel.
Crohn's Disease
Crohn’s desease
 What Causes It?
• Medical research hasn't
determined yet what
causes inflammatory
bowel disease. But
researchers believe that
a number of factors may
be involved, such as the
environment, diet, and
possibly genetics.
 What Are the Signs and
Symptoms?
• The most common symptoms of both ulcerative
colitis and Crohn's disease are diarrhea and
abdominal pain.
• Diarrhea can range from mild to severe (as many
as 20 or more trips to the bathroom a day).
• If the diarrhea is extreme, it can lead to
dehydration, rapid heartbeat, and a drop in blood
pressure.
• And continued loss of small amounts of blood in
the stool can lead to anemia.
 How Is It Diagnosed?
• Inflammatory bowel
disease can be hard to
diagnose because there
may be no symptoms,
even if the person's
bowel has become
increasingly damaged
for years.
• Once symptoms do
appear, they often
resemble those of other
conditions, which may
make it difficult for
doctors to diagnose.
 How Is It Treated?
Drug treatment is the main method for relieving the
symptoms of both ulcerative colitis and Crohn's
disease. Great progress is being made in the
development of medications for treating
inflammatory bowel disease. Your doctor may
prescribe:
• anti-inflammatory drugs (used to decrease the
inflammation caused by the disease)
• immunosuppressive agents (which work to
restrain the immune system from attacking the
body's own tissues and causing further
inflammation)
 How Is It Treated?
☼ With Crohn's disease, doctors make every attempt to
avoid surgery because of the recurring nature of the
disease.
☼ There's also a concern that an aggressive surgical
approach to Crohn's disease will cause further
complications, such as short bowel syndrome (which
involves growth failure and a reduced ability to absorb
nutrients).
☼ In the case of ulcerative colitis, removal of the colon may
be necessary, along with a surgical procedure called an
ileoanal anastomosis (also called an ileoanal pull-
through) in which doctors form a pouch from the small
bowel to collect stool in the pelvis.
☼ This allows the stool to pass through the anus.