Crohn's Treatment:
Short and Long Term Options |
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Crohn's Disease is a painful and chronic illness causing inflammation of the digestive tract. While symptoms may occur anywhere in the digestive system, the hallmark of Crohn's Disease is ulcers in the intestines. The disease can cause a range of symptoms from hemorrhoids to anemia due to internal bleeding, but the most common symptoms are severe pain and persistent diarrhea.
Crohn's treatment can be short term or long term, depending on the stage and severity of the disease. Crohn's treatment also includes the treatment of each symptom as is necessary. For more serious cases, Crohn's treatment may involve multiple medications or surgery.
For initial stages of the disease, Crohn's treatment may include the usage of steroids and addressing specific symptoms such as treatment for associated hemorrhoids. Long-term usage of steroids is typically avoided, because steroids have a number of serious side effects such as diabetes and high blood pressure. For later stage and more serious cases, pharmacological Crohn's treatment may consist of types of medicine called salycicates, which may be administered in the forms of sulfasalazine, mesalamine, olsalazine, or balsalazide.
Drug options for Crohn's treatment also include medicines that adjust and control the immune system, such as methotrexate or azathioprine. These immunomodulating drugs are typically only employed in more serious cases. For cases that resist other forms of treatment, a drug called infliximab (Remicade) may be used.
In serious, widespread cases, the only viable form of Crohn's treatment may be surgery. The surgery used in Crohn's treatment is called ileostomy, and it removes the colon and rectum. While surgery is an option for treatment it is not a cure, therefore doctors are reluctant to perform it. Furthermore, Crohn's Disease may reoccur where the ileostomy was performed.
Crohn's treatment may also be naturopathic or homeopathic, if the patient prefers to attempt this route. Vitamin complexes such as Vitacel have been developed specifically for this purpose. Some experts recommend the usage of individual herbs such as licorice root and ginseng. External treatments like far-reaching infrared are also available. These treatments typically involve the usage of a lamp to deliver specific types of light to the body, sending high concentrations of oxygen to the effected areas.
The type of Crohn's treatment employed is dependent on a number of factors, including the stage of the disease at the time of diagnosis, the severity of the disease, and the way the disease and the patient have reacted to other treatment options tried in the past. Whichever treatment type is pursued, the patient should always consult with his or her doctor to ensure that the treatment used is safe and is in fact a viable option for his or her specific case.
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