+Doc+

Just wondering how many people have been affected or come into contact with Crohns, unfortunatly my GF has it and is currently in and out of Hostpital with flare ups. Is it as common as I think it is?
Doc


[Edited by +Doc+ - 10/31/2002 12:26:31 PM]

Scoobychick

iTrader: (1)

A friend of mine has it, diagnosed in about '98. She'll be taking drugs for it for the rest of her life and, as long as she does it doesn't seem to affect her lifestyle too badly at all at the moment.

Sal

yoza

Very common in the bodybuilding community,
It has been linked to steroid abuse........
Have a few friends who suffer from it,nasty,horrible illness.
Hope you GF gets better soon.
Later yoza

Mice_Elf

My cousin's got it. He's not a body-builder or anything remotely similar...

He leads a fairly normal life, but just has to be careful on some things.

yoza

Mice-elf,
I said it was common in the bodybuilding community,didnt mean you had to be a bodybuilder to suffer from it.
Sorry for any confusion....

markr1963

One of my friends had Crohn's Disease. Unfortunately this was a particularly chronic case and led to her having major surgery that removed a considerable amount of plumbing. Before the op she was very ill. Since then it has transformed her life. Ok, she now has to use a bag 'cos most of her colon and associated pipework have been removed but overall she's as fit as a flea.

I'm not scaremongering here. I do remember her telling me that it is quite common and the severity varies enormously just happens she got it bad.

cwal1

Seems to be fairly common. Wife's brother has/ had it.

Chris.

Brun

My mother has had a couple of operations because of it!

Mice_Elf

Yoza - no worries.


My cousin did start life in and out of hospitals, but it's rare now for him to go in.

Horrid disease, but cope-able with.

TonyG

My cousin suffers from it. She's had 2 or 3 operations because of it. She's not so bad now, but there was one period wher eshe was off work for several months some years ago.

Doc

Despite the fact that you have tried to steal my username I'll try and answer your question!!

Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel condition which can affect any part of the bowel from mouth to anus. It is the most common non-specific inflammatory bowel disease but we do not know the cause. Some researchers believe that there may be a link with the measles virus and/or measles vaccine but this is not proven.

It is initially managed medically with steroids during an acute attack. Other drugs are given to try and maintain remission (eg sulfasalazine, mesalazine etc). If medical treatment fails then surgery may be required. Surgeons try to retain as much bowel as possible. The problem is that recurrence is common and the bowel may stenose (narrow) or fistulas (abnormal connections between bowel and either other bowel loops or bladder etc) may form.

The disease occurs most often in young adults, rarely below the age of 8 but late onset is not unknown. The incidence of Crohns has been increasing for the last couple of decades, but we don't know why.

Diarrhoea, abdominal pain, weight loss and fever are the most common clinical symptoms.

I hope I haven't scared you. The best bet is to talk to your gp and your gastroenterologist.

Have a look at Crohns disease

+Doc+

Doc unfotunatly I`m quite an expert on it now, living with someone who has had it seven years i`ve seen it first hand i was wondering who else had been effected by it. By the looks quite a few.
NB, I`ve been Doc on the RS Board for years

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

My Gand dad has the cronic version of this, it was unfortunately fatal in his case but this was back in the early 70's (73-4) so no doubt they have come along way since then

Tony

scoobymoo

Company I work for (and some others) are currently developing anti TNF (tumour necrosis factor) drugs which look very promising as a treatment for crohns and other auto-immune inflammatory disorders. They are just as effective as steroids with none of the nasty side effects. One is already licensed for use in the clinic but is extremely expensive. Ours will be much cheaper so hopefully much more widely available. ;-)

[Edited by scoobymoo - 10/31/2002 4:48:19 PM]

+Doc+

Scoobymoo, great news, keep up the good work

AnDy_PaNdY

My mother had it and it nearly killed her at the time (she is dead now sadly ).
It it very unpleasant but you can live a fairly normal life afterwards.
Best of luck.

PG

my GFs brother in law has had the same op as markr has talked about and it has vastly improved his standard of living.

JamieMacdonald

My Dad has, correction had , ulcerative colitis which is very similar to Crohn's. I say had as he no longer has a colon thanks to a nice surgeon . He currently has to use an external bag but he looks and feels 100 times better than before the operation. He had to take steroids which had some nasty side effects .
Because of his age (he's only 43), he is going to have an operation to construct an internal pouch early next year which should give him an almost normal lifestyle.
They're both horrible diseases, I was wondering if anyone else has experienced UC as it is quite similar to Crohn's.

J

Gastro

As a gastroenterologist if you have any other specific questions mail me offline and I'll try and answer them (UC or CD)....

Cheers,

Gastro

DrJP

My dad has Crohns disease & I've been involved with the treatment of quite a few people with it. It follows a variable course, some people need numerous operations with bowel resections that can eventually lead to problems with absorbing food (one extreme). Other people remain relatively symptom free without the need for medication.

There's quite a few help groups around.

Alec

My ex had it. Terrible diesease. She used to use www.ibdsucks.com, good chrons community.

Alec

rich1231

I am 31, I was diagnosed with Crohns when I was 17, after 3 years of hell. I had surgery to remove some ulcerated bowel and have been pretty ok ever since. Feel free to mail me off line.


Rich