Ulcerative Colitis

Treatment Of Colitis: An Overview

Ulcerative colitis is a form of inflammatory bowel disease. The treatment of colitis entirely depends upon the severity of the disease. The case of ulcerative colitis is severe if the inflammation in the intestine is to a great extent. The ultimate goal of the treatment is to induce remission initially with medicines. This is followed by a series of medications to prevent the recurrence of the disease. The initial step of the treatment process is relief from the symptoms healing of the lining of the colon. The further treatment involves a long term treatment to maintain the same state that is without the symptoms.

The treatment of ulcerative colitis includes drug therapy that is giving drugs to cure it. These drugs are extremely effective but may have some complications or side effects. Some of the drugs are Sulfasalazine, which is a major agent used in the treatment of mild and moderate ulcerative colitis. The active compound present in sulfasalazine is 5-amino salacylic acid. Other drugs are Mesalazine, Balsalazide and Olsalazine. All of these would fall in the category of aminosalacytes.

There is another category of drugs, namely, the Corticosteroids including Cortisone, Prednisone, Prednisolone and Budesonide. The last category of drugs is the immunosuppressive drugs and drugs like the Mercaptopurine, Azathioprine, Tacrolimus fall under this category.

Apart from the drug therapy, there are other treatment options such as the modification of your diet. Patients should avoid fresh fruits and vegetables, caffeine, sorbitol containing foods and carbonated drinks. A common compound found in fish oil called the omega three fatty acid is also useful because it reduces the level of a substance which causes inflammation. Short chain fatty acids like Butyrate are present in the lining of the colon. It is produced during digestion of complex substances but in patients with ulcerative colitis, these nutrients arent produced. There are also herbal medications used by patients with the disease. Compounds containing sulphydryl affect the ulcerative colitis and treat it.

Some patients are also given a prescription of steroids. Steroids prove to be absolutely effective but are toxic. These help in bringing a remission but not in maintaining it.

In much serious cases of ulcerative colitis, the patient is advised to be hospitalized. The extreme case of ulcerative colitis would make a patient suffer from severe bleeding, severe diarrhea with bleeding which results in dehydration. Such cases are treated by stopping diarrhea immediately. For this, the patient is given a special diet, feeding through the vein or sometimes a surgery if the case worsens further.

There is only one surgical treatment of colitis called Colectomy which involves the removal of colon. This surgery cures the disease completely since the affected organ is removed. Surgery is performed on patients who have had the disease for many years. Another reason is the lesions in the colon and hole in the colon.

With such valuable information on the treatment of colitis, it is important to understand what it entails thoroughly and then decide the best course of action.