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Crohn's disease - Symptoms

Description

An in-depth report on the causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of Crohn's disease.

Alternative Names

Inflammatory bowel disease - Crohn's disease

Symptoms:

The two major inflammatory bowel diseases, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, share certain characteristics:

Symptoms usually appear in young adults.
Symptoms can develop gradually or have a sudden onset.
Both are chronic. In either disease, symptoms may flare up (relapse) after symptom-free periods (remission) or symptoms may be continuous without treatment.
Symptoms can be mild or very severe and disabling.

The specific symptoms of Crohn� ' s disease vary depending on where the disease is located in the intestinal tract (ileum, colon, stomach, duodenum, or jejunum). Common symptoms of Crohn� ' s disease include:

Abdominal pain, usually in lower right side
Diarrhea
Weight loss
Rectal bleeding
Fever
Nausea and vomiting
Skin lesions
Joint pain

Resources

www.ccfa.org -- Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America
www.gastro.org -- American Gastroenterological Association
www.acg.gi.org -- American College of Gastroenterology
www2.niddk.nih.gov -- National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse

References

Akobeng AK. Crohn's disease: current treatment options. Arch Dis Child. 2008;93(9): 787-92.

Akobeng AK and Thomas AG. Enteral nutrition for maintenance of remission in Crohn's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2007;(3): CD005984.

Baumgart DC and Sandborn WJ. Inflammatory bowel disease: clinical aspects and established and evolving therapies. Lancet. 2007;369(9573): 1641-57.

Behm BW, Bickston SJ. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha antibody for maintenance of remission in Crohn's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2008;(1):CD006893.

Benchimol EI, Seow CH, Steinhart AH and Griffiths AM. Traditional corticosteroids for induction of remission in Crohn's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2008;(2): CD006792.

Butterworth AD, Thomas AG, Akobeng AK. Probiotics for induction of remission in Crohn's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2008 Jul 16;(3):CD006634.

Clark M, Colombel JF, Feagan BC, Fedorak RN, Hanauer SB, Kamm MA, et al. American gastroenterological association consensus development conference on the use of biologics in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease, June 21-23,2006. Gastroenterology. 2007 Jul;133(1):312-39.

Cummings JR, Keshav S and Travis SP. Medical management of Crohn's disease. BMJ. 2008;336(7652):1062-6.

Feagan BG, Sandborn WJ, Mittmann U, Bar-Meir S, D'Haens G, Bradette M, et al. Omega-3 free fatty acids for the maintenance of remission in Crohn disease: the EPIC Randomized Controlled Trials. JAMA. 2008;299(14):1690-7.

MacDonald JK and McDonald JW. Natalizumab for induction of remission in Crohn's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2007;(1):CD006097.

Mahid SS, Minor KS, Soto RE, Hornung CA and Galandiuk S. Smoking and inflammatory bowel disease: a meta-analysis. Mayo Clin Proc. 2006;81(11):1462-71.

Rahimi R, Nikfar S, Rahimi F, Elahi B, Derakhshani S, Vafaie M, et al. A meta-analysis on the efficacy of probiotics for maintenance of remission and prevention of clinical and endoscopic relapse in Crohn's disease. Dig Dis Sci. 2008;53(9):2524-31.

Sandborn WJ, Feagan BG, Stoinov S, Honiball PJ, Rutgeerts P, Mason D, et al. Certolizumab pegol for the treatment of Crohn's disease. N Engl J Med. 2007 Jul 19;357(3):228-238.

Schreiber S, Khaliq-Kareemi M, Lawrance IC, Thomsen OO, Hanauer SB, McColm J, et al. Maintenance therapy with certolizumab pegol for Crohn's disease. N Engl J Med. 2007 Jul 19;357(3):239-250.

Seow CH, Benchimol EI, Griffiths AM, Otley AR and Steinhart AH. Budesonide for induction of remission in Crohn's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2008;(3):CD000296.

Strong SA, Koltun WA, Hyman NH, Buie WD; Standards Practice Task Force of The American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons. Practice parameters for the surgical management of Crohn's disease. Dis Colon Rectum. 2007;50(11):1735-46.

Yamamoto T, Fazio VW, Tekkis PP. Safety and efficacy of strictureplasty for Crohn's disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Dis Colon Rectum. 2007;50(11):1968-86.

Zachos M, Tondeur M and Griffiths AM. Enteral nutritional therapy for induction of remission in Crohn's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2007;(1):CD000542.

Reviewed last on: 12/1/2008
Harvey Simon, MD, Editor-in-Chief, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Physician, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

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