Crohn’s Disease History |
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Given the limited amount of knowledge about inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) prior to Dr. Burril Crohn and his associates publishing their paper in 1932, one could imagine that the disease is a relatively new development, like AIDS or the Ebola Virus. In fact, Dr. Crohn wasn’t even the first to publish a paper on IBD.
The First Diagnosis
In 1913, Dr. Kennedy Dalziel recognized and classified the identifying symptoms that make Crohn’s a unique diagnosis. Having witnessed the debilitating affect on many of his patients, the Scottish surgeon searched for a cause and found none.
Dr. Dalziel noticed a similarity in his patients’ complaints to that of a disease discovered in cattle in 1895 by a German doctor named H.A. Johne (pronounced yo-neez). The cattle disease, called Johne’s disease, was different from the human patients in that there were found acid-fast bacilli, or bacteria, known to cause the symptoms. Dr. Dalziel pointed out in his paper that though to the naked eye the diseases were identical, the lack of bacilli made them very different.
“In many cases the absence of acid-fast bacilli would suggest a clear distinction, but the histological characters are so similar as to justify a proposition that the disease may be the same.”
Though he was never able to find the etiology of the disease, he fully expected that it would soon be forthcoming.
Known by Many Names
Inflammatory bowel disease may have been first diagnosed in the early 20th century, but the disease has been around for a long time. It has been known by many different things throughout the ages.
- Bloody Flux
- Dysentery
- Diarrhea Disease
- Terminal Ileitis
The Bible refers to various people being struck down by the bloody flux, giving graphic descriptions of Crohn’s like symptoms. In 130 A.D., Soranus, a greek physician, wrote about a diarrhea disease that meant the end to young people who contracted it. King Alfred, “England’s Darling”, was known to have been afflicted with dysentery in 850 A.D. at the age of 21, though it was believed to be a curse for his sinful practices in his youth.
Recent History
Physicians and Scientists have noticed an unusual trend since Dr. Crohn’s et al paper was published in the Journal of American Medical Association. As lifestyles have changed throughout the last century, there has been an increase in the number of diagnoses.
Since the 1940s, cases of Crohn’s disease have more than quadrupled from the initial numbers in the population. The disease is being found in younger patients, as well. Before the 1940s, no cases had been identified in teenagers, but more and more often that’s the case.
More Cases or Better at Diagnosing?
With better science and more money being pumped into Crohn’s research, it’s very difficult to determine if the disease is becoming more prevalent, or if doctors are just better and recognizing it. The younger ages at diagnosis could be a direct result of a more sedentary lifestyle, or of better diagnoses tools.
Until doctors know what causes this horrible disease, those questions will remain unanswered.
It’s been 93 years since Dr. Dalziel first identified IBD, and scientists are still looking. It took several thousand years to isolate the disease from dozens of other intestinal disorders known throughout history, though, so one shouldn’t be surprised.
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