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Ulcerative Colitis - Ulcerative Colitis symptom, treatment, causes

Ulcerative Colitis is a chronic relapsing disease that affects the large bowel and is characterised by inflammation and ulceration of is lining membrane. The disease usually begins in the rectum and lower part of the large bowel, but may extend to involve the entire large bowel. Ulcerative colitis may occur at any age, but most often develops between 15 and 3°. The cause is unknown.

Ulcerative colitis is a disease that causes inflammation and sores, called ulcers, in the lining of the rectum and colon. Symptoms include rectal bleeding, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, weight loss, and fevers. The other main inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn's disease, can affect any part of the digestive tract from the mouth to the anus. In around 10% of cases, it is not possible for doctors to distinguish between ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. For more information, please see the separate BUPA factsheet titled Crohn's disease. They affect approximately 500,000 to 2 million people In the United States. Men and women are affected equally. They most commonly begin during adolescence and early adulthood, but they also can begin during childhood and later in life. It is found worldwide, but is most common in the United States, England, and northern Europe. It is especially common in people of Jewish descent. Ulcerative colitis is rarely seen in Eastern Europe, Asia, and South America, and is rare in the black population. For unknown reasons, an increased frequency of this condition has been recently observed in developing nations.

Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory disease of the colon or large bowel. Ulcers form where inflammation has killed the cells that usually line the colon, then bleed and produce pus. Inflammation in the colon also causes the colon to empty frequently, causing diarrhea. As cells on the surface of the lining of the colon die and slough off, ulcers (open sores) form and may cause the discharge of pus and mucus, in addition to bleeding. Ulcerative colitis can occur in people of any age, but it usually starts between the ages of 15 and 30, and less frequently between 50 and 70 years of age. It affects men and women equally and appears to run in families, with reports of up to 20 percent of people with ulcerative colitis having a family member or relative with ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease.

Causes of Ulcerative Colitis

The common Causes of Ulcerative Colitis :

• The cause of ulcerative colitis is unknown.
• Smoking is negatively associated with ulcerative colitis. This relationship is reversed in Crohn disease.
• Genetic susceptibility (chromosomes 12 and 16) is a factor associated with ulcerative colitis. A positive family history (observed in 1 in 6 relatives) is associated with a higher risk for developing the disease.
• Environmental factors may be involved.
• Milk consumption may exacerbate the disease.
• Serum and mucosal autoantibodies against intestinal epithelial cells may be involved. Persons with ulcerative colitis are often found to have p-antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies.

Symptom of Ulcerative Colitis

Ulcerative Colitis can be explained as the attacks of bloody diarrhoea alternate with symptom free intervals. Attacks vary in severity and frequency, and may be months apart or almost continuous. Severe attacks are sudden in onset with violent diarrhoea, high fever and severe abdominal pain in an extremely m patient. More often attacks begin gradually, with increased need to pass faeces, mild lower abdominal cramps, and the appearance of blood and mucus in faeces. Some common Symptoms of Ulcerative Colitis :

• Abdominal pain.
• Rectal bleeding.
• Weight loss.
• Anemia.
• Fatigue.
• Skin lesions.
• Loss of appetite.
• Loss of body fluids and nutrients.
• Growth failure (specifically in children).

Complication of Ulcerative Colitis

There is a high risk of ANAEMIA caused by the ongoing bleeding from ulcers. Emergency complications include severe bleeding. PERITONITIS, paralysis of the intestine. MEGA-COLON ( excessive dilation of the large bowel ) and bowei perforation, on the long term, patients are at increased risk of COLON CANCER, ANKYLOSING SPONDYLITIS (inflammation of the spine). UVEITIS (inflammation of the middle layer of the eye) and other inflammatory disorders of connective tissue.

Diagnosis and Treatment of Ulcerative Colitis

The diagnosis is confirmed by colonoscopy (internal examination of the colon via a viewing instrument). To treat the disease. anti-inflammatory drugs are given by mouth or, if the disease is confined to the lower bowel, by enema. Avoidance of certain uncooked fruits and vegetables is usually advised, because the fibre in them could aggravate the inflammation. Antidiarrhoeal medications must be used with caution because of the risk of triggering megacolon. During severe attacks, patients usually need admission to hospital for intravenous fluid and salt replaement and constant monitoring for serious complications. In severe cases resistant to. drug treatment, a temporary COLO STOMY (outlet for the colon via the abdominal wall) to rest the inflamed bowel, or surgical removal of the large bowel, may be advised.

• Children with ulcerative colitis occasionally have symptoms severe enough to require hospitalization to correct malnutrition and to stop diarrhea and loss of blood, fluids, and mineral salts. The patient may need a special diet, feeding through a vein, medications, or, in some cases, surgery.
• Bed rest.
• Abdominal cramps and diarrhea may be helped by medications that reduce inflammation in the colon. More serious cases may require steroid drugs, antibiotics, or drugs that affect the body's immune system.
• Most children with ulcerative colitis do not need surgery. However, about 20 to 40 percent of ulcerative colitis children eventually require surgery for removal of the colon because of massive bleeding, chronic debilitating illness, perforation of the colon or risk of cancer. Sometimes, removing the colon is suggested when medical treatment fails or the side effects of steroids or other drugs threaten the patient's health.