Crohn’s disease is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory bowel condition.
Crohn’s disease is a pathology that mainly affects the intestine . It is one of the most severe health problems that this organ can suffer, and there are many people in the world who live conditioned to this condition.
The following explains what Crohn’s disease is, as well as its causes, symptoms, and treatment. Everything there is to know about this condition, which is not understood by a large part of the population and often causes those affected to suffer in silence.
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What is Crohn’s disease?
In Crohn’s disease there is chronic inflammation in the digestive system . This disorder that can affect the entire gastrointestinal tract, from the mouth to the rectum, although it develops mainly in the intestine.
The parts of the intestine most sensitive to this inflammation are the ileum (the last part of the small intestine), and the ascending colon (the first part of the large intestine), these inflammations being known as ileitis and ileocolitis, respectively.
In fact, the initial name for this condition was “regional ileitis.” It was discovered by the American doctor Burrill Bernard Crohn in 1932, and later the name of the disease was changed in tribute to his great work in clarifying the disease.
Today it is known that Crohn’s disease can actually affect any part of the intestine, and do so continuously or in parts. Between one inflamed area and another there may be a jump, thus creating healthy portions and portions with this pathology interspersed.
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Causes
The exact causes of Crohn’s disease are still unknown . This problem is generally considered to develop as a result of a combination of numerous factors.
On the one hand, it is clear that there are autoimmune reactions involved in Crohn’s disease, but it is not known with certainty if this can be a cause as such. It seems that some bacteria of the digestive tract could be involved in the activation of the disease.
It seems that there are genetic factors that affect the course of the disease as well. It has been shown that you are more likely to develop this disease if a blood relative has it, although research has not yet resolved the link between genes and this condition.
The many other factors that can determine whether someone has Crohn’s disease must be interpreted epigenetically. Bad habits such as smoking, stress, a poor diet, a sedentary lifestyle or taking narcotic substances can have a great responsibility in the appearance of the disease.
This includes the consumption of some medications, such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), birth control pills or antibiotics.
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Symptoms
The most common symptoms of Crohn’s disease are abdominal pain . These are usually associated with diarrhea or even fever, and sometimes the acute symptomatology can resemble that of appendicitis.
Crohn’s disease usually develops gradually and tends to get worse over time. In some cases there may be periods of remission lasting weeks or even years, but this is not the case in all cases. The symptoms of this disease are more persistent compared to other similar diseases (such as ulcerative colitis or microscopic colitis).
Those who suffer from this disease may also feel fatigue and tiredness, as well as the need to have frequent bowel movements. However, there may be symptoms related to organs other than the intestine. The liver, the eyes, the kidneys or the skin can present some alterations that the specialist doctor knows how to recognize.
Sometimes some of these symptoms manifest themselves more when you have just eaten, and it should also be noted that they can vary depending on the case. The child population can also suffer from Crohn’s disease, and the most common is that growth can be altered in the form of delay.
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Diagnosis
Crohn’s disease can go unnoticed for years, and many people go undiagnosed . It is commonly confused with common conditions of the gastrointestinal system, but they are characterized by their chronicity and acuteness.
Thus, all people who have unexplained persistent diarrhea, abdominal pain, weight loss or blood in the stool should go to the doctor to see what is happening.
According to the Spanish Society of Digestive Pathology, it is estimated that only in Spain there are about 50,000 cases, while in the United States the figure rises to half a million people.
Scientific research in this regard also shows that over the years the incidence of the disease increases throughout the world.
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Treatment
To date there is no cure for Crohn’s disease . The treatment is based on controlling the evolution and symptoms, as well as preventing the complications that may occur.
However, in some cases periods of remission are achieved. Sometimes they are long and can last for years, with a total absence of symptoms.
In any case, it is difficult to establish a standard treatment for Crohn’s disease. It is a disease of a very heterogeneous nature, which is reflected by a remarkable diversity of treatment options available for each patient.
There are patients who share a more similar pathological situation. As there are different cases, the disease can be faced with a more guided approach in therapeutic decision-making. In these cases the treatment is typically from drugs.
In cases where the patterns of the disease are more aggressive, unpredictable or when complications occur, another approach must be applied. In this case, combined medical and surgical treatments are the ones that give rise to the best results.
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Bibliographic references
- Beattie, RM, Croft, NM, Fell, JM, Afzal, NA, & Heuschkel, RB (2006). Inflammatory bowel disease. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 91(5), 426–432 .
- Braat, H., Peppelenbosch, MP, and Hommes, DW (2006). Immunology of Crohn’s disease. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1072, 135–154 .
- Dubinsky, M.C., and Fleshner, P.P. (2003). Treatment of Crohn’s Disease of Inflammatory, Stenotic, and Fistulizing Phenotypes. Curr Treat Options Gastroenterol, 6(3), 183–200 .
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