The Cramping Condition: What is Crohn's Disease?
What on earth is going on? What is Crohn's disease and just what do you do now that you have been diagnosed with this often challenging disease? Seeking the appropriate treatment for your disease is most important so that you can achieve a more balanced sense of wellness.
Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel disease and may also be known as ileitis or enteritis. It is a chronic condition that leads to inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. One of the real challenges with Crohn's disease is that it can affect any area of the gastrointestinal or G.I. tract, from the mouth to the anus. However, most commonly Crohn's affects the Ilium, or the lower portion of the small intestine.
The inflammation and edema associated with Crohn's disease extends quite deep into the lining of the G.I. tract. It is this inflammation and swelling which leads to the pain associated with Crohn's disease. This same swelling also causes the body to force the intestinal tract to empty its contents frequently which results in diarrhea. It is the pain and diarrhea that are both known to impact the sufferers' quality of life.
When you first present to your health care provider describing your abdominal symptoms, it may be initially difficult to get a definitive diagnosis of Crohn's disease. This is because Crohn's disease so often mimics other intestinal diseases such as IBS or irritable bowel syndrome and even ulcerative colitis. Two things which can help your health care provider to determine whether you have Crohn's disease or a less invasive bowel condition are the facts that Crohn's disease has the potential to invade every layer of the intestinal tract while this is not true with other conditions and Crohn's disease also can present itself with areas of healthy bowel tissue in between areas of horrifically diseased bowel tissue.
Currently it seems that Crohn's disease is not partial to the sexes, it interrupts the lives of both men and women equally. However, research does seem to indicate that Crohn's disease does seem to run in families. Many patients who suffer with Crohn's disease also have a blood relative who is fighting the same. If not with Crohn's disease itself, with another inflammatory bowel condition.
It seems a cruel twist of fate that young adulthood, between the ages of 20 and 30, is one of the most exciting times of your life, but it is also the time when most patients are diagnosed with Crohn's disease. Research also currently shows that people of Jewish descent have an increased risk of developing Crohn's disease, while those of African-American descent have the lowest risk.
Crohn's disease absolutely is not something to be ignored and not something that you can choose to manage on occasion. You must work very closely with your primary health care provider as well as your gastroenterologist in order to develop a comprehensive treatment plan best designed for your situation.
Yes, Crohn's disease certainly can alter your daily activities and it certainly requires an aggressive management plan designed in collaboration with your physician, but just because you have been diagnosed with Crohn's disease it does not mean that you simply give up on regaining control of your body and finding a healthy medium with which you can live.
Crohn's disease is certainly a challenging condition for many people to manage. While symptoms can range from mild to severe, the ongoing battle to control the abdominal pain and diarrhea associated with this inflammatory bowel disease can put a crimp in anybody's style. You simply must work with your gastroenterologist or primary care physician in order to design it best and most livable treatment plan for you.
What is Crohn's disease? It is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that deserves your full attention as well as the aggressive treatment and management by your health care team.
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