Ulcerative Colitis

Ulcerative Colitis – General Information

Ulcerative Colitis – Symptoms

The majority of patients who suffer from Ulcerative Colitis complain of various signs and symptoms specific for this medical disorder. All the manifestations of this disease depend on the site of the inflammation and also on its severity; their course can vary, with periods of remission that alternate with periods of severe symptoms. Usually, as the time passes, the severity of Ulcerative Colitis does not drastically change and the disease remains in a certain stage. The signs and symptoms of this medical disorder may change suddenly and the patients who present a milder condition may start accusing more dangerous and serious signs. There are several forms of this disease that are characterized by certain specific signs and symptoms.

Pancolitis is a form that attacks the colon and leads to the appearance of pain felt in the abdominal area, sweats during the night, diarrhea with blood, weight loss, and severe tiredness. Another form, ulcerative proctitis may only be characterized by rectal bleeding because the inflammation usually develops in the rectum. When the inflammation spreads to the descending colon and to the sigmoid colon, then the patient is suffering from left-sided colitis and he may also complain of weight loss, bloody diarrhea, and pain and cramps in the abdominal region. There can also appear a more severe, but rarer form of the disease, known as fulminant colitis. This type of Ulcerative Colitis can represent a real threat for the patient’s life, involving inflammation of the entire colon. The pain may be extreme, dehydration may occur along with shock.

Ulcerative Colitis – Treatment

The goal in applying the treatment for Ulcerative Colitis is to reduce the inflammation that causes the appearance of the specific signs and symptoms. In most cases, the treatment for this disease consists in drug therapy or surgery. Doctors use certain categories of medicines that can control the inflammation in different ways, as while some drugs can work very well for some patients, for others they have little to no effect. Furthermore, the patient must carefully weigh the benefits and risks of the treatment because it can cause severe side effects. The most common medicines used to treat Ulcerative Colitis can include anti inflammatory drugs and immune system suppressors. The anti inflammatory medicines are the first option in the medicine treatment against the inflammation and can include Sulfasazine or Azulfidine, Mesalamine or Asacol, Olsalazine or Dipentum, and Balsalazide or Colazal. Sulfasalazine acts by reducing the symptoms caused by the disease, but it can also lead to several side effects such as nausea, vomiting, heartburn and headache. Mesalamine and Olsalazine are medications that cause fewer side effects as the first one, and can be administered in tablet form.

The medicine acts by relieving the symptoms. There are cases in which Olsalazine can worsen the existing diarrhea in some patients. Balsalazide is a medication that delivers anti inflammatory substances directly to the patient’s colon, using a less toxic carrier and produces fewer side effects. The immune system suppressors act by reducing the inflammation but target the patient’s immune system instead of treating the inflammation directly. Due to the fact that these medicines are effective in treating Ulcerative Colitis, some doctors say that the damage done to the digestive tissue is caused by the patient’s body immune response to a virus or even to its own tissue. By suppressing this reaction, the inflammation is reduced. The most common immune system suppressors that are used to treat Ulcerative Colitis include Azathioprine or Imuran, Mercaptopurine or Purinethol, Cyclosporine or Neoral and Infliximab or Remicade.

Imuran and Putinethol act slowly, and can be administered in combination with corticosteroids, with less long term toxicity. The medications can also cause certain side effects such as allergic reactions, bone marrow suppression, infections, and inflammation of the liver and pancreas. Neoral is a quite common medicine that is usually administered when the patient does not respond to the other drugs or he must go under surgery. There are cases in which it can cause serious side effects such as kidney and liver damage, fatal infections and an increased risk of lymphoma. Remicade is applied especially in children with moderate Ulcerative Colitis and act by neutralizing a protein produced by the patient’s immune system also known as tumor necrosis factor. The medicine finds the factor and removes it from the bloodstream before it causes the inflammation of the intestinal tract. There are cases in which the doctor can choose the surgical treatment for the patient, which can consist in removing the entire colon and rectum, applying a procedure called proctocolectomy.