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Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory Bowel Disease is the name
of a group of disorders that cause the intestines in
a person's body to become red and swollen. Symptoms
of the disorder include abdominal pain, intestinal bleeding,
abdominal cramps, diarrhea, and weight loss. Inflammatory
Bowel Disease can last for long periods of time, and
even though it may seem to go away at times, it usually
comes back during a person's lifetime. An estimated
600,000 Americans deal with some sort of Inflammatory
Bowel Disease.
There are actually two main types of Inflammatory
Bowel Disease, depending upon where the inflammation
is located. Crohn's Disease is the first type, and it
generally causes open sores, or ulcers along the entire
gastrointestinal tract. The second type of Inflammatory
Bowel Disease is called ulcerative colitis, and is characterized
by ulcers along the colon, usually starting at the rectum.
Crohn's Disease usually does not directly affect the
rectum.
If symptoms are presented in a patient,
a doctor will generally run some tests to see if the
person has an Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Using a small
camera inserted through the anus, a colonoscopy can
examine the colon and bowel areas. It will help the
doctor determine whether there are ulcers or lesions
inside the colon or areas of the digestive tract. Other
types of x-rays may be used as well.
Treatment for Inflammatory Bowel Disease
can range from taking different types of medicines,
all the way to extensive surgeries. There are medicines
that can reduce the inflammation, as well as medicines
derived from steroids. Certain antibiotics can also
be used to kill germs that are residing in the gastrointestinal
tract, especially for people suffering from Crohn's
Disease. In order to treat the symptoms, doctors may
prescribe over the counter medications such as laxatives,
or anti-diarrheal medicine. Medicines may also be used
to treat the pain that comes with Inflammatory Bowel
Disease. If the problems become so severe that the medicines
do not seem to be helping, surgery may be required.
Parts or the entire colon may need to be removed in
that case.
The quality of life for a person with
Inflammatory Bowel Disease can be greatly compromised
due to the symptoms such as diarrhea and painful cramps.
However, the disease is generally not a fatal one, unless
there are complications in surgery or other complications
that arise because of the disease. These complications
are rare though. The disease can lead to colorectal
cancer, but due to the routine x-rays and colonoscopies,
it is generally caught soon enough that patients have
high survival rates. The main goal in treating patients
with Inflammatory Bowel Disease is to achieve remission
from the disease. If this happens, the patient will
remain on lighter dosages of medications in hopes of
staying in remission. Despite this, many patients will
experience a reoccurrence of the disease throughout
their lifetime. It is rare for a patient not to have
a reoccurrence at some point.
Recently, studies have shown that the
acne medication, Accutane, has
been linked to causing Inflammatory Bowel Disease, especially
in patients that may have already had problems with
their gastrointestinal tract. According to a preliminary
study, patients that used Accutane were 1.68 times more
likely to develop Inflammatory Bowel Disease than those
that did not use the acne medication. The longer the
patient used Accutane, the higher the chance he or she
had of developing the disease.
There are currently over one thousand
lawsuits being taking against the company responsible
for Accutane. Some patients have even been awarded millions
of dollars against the company for not being warned
about the relationship between the medicine and the
disease. Over $56 million in damages have been awarded
to those that have suffered from Inflammatory Bowel
Disease due to the use of Accutane.
The company responsible for Accutane did pull the medicine
from shelves in 2009, but not for the issues connected
to Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Instead, they are claiming
financial reasons as their motive. Regardless, patients
that have taken the acne drug should be aware of potential
risks and complications that may arise from their use
of the drug. Inflammatory Bowel Disease is a serious
disorder that can be very unpleasant for those that
suffer from it.
For more Accutane information please view
the links below:
Accutane
and how it relates to Crohn’s Disease
Accutane and
how it relates to: Ulcerative Colitis
What is Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Accutane
Info | Accutane Lawsuits
| Accutane Attorneys
Accutane Side
Effects | Accutane &
IBD
Accutane Case Evaluation
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