(IBD)
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- What is IBD?
- Symptoms of IBD
- Causes of IBD
- Prevention of IBD
- Risk factors for IBD
- Complications of IBD
- When to see a doctor about IBD
- Diagnosis of IBD
- Conventional treatment of IBD
- Alternative/complementary treatment of IBD
- Living with IBD
- Caring for someone with IBD
Complications of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
There are a number of complications of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD):
- Anaemia - many people with inflammatory bowel disease have deficiency of intrinsic factor, associated with a lack of vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin) due to malabsorption and this can result in anaemia
- Dehydration - the person with inflammatory bowel disease may become dehydrated due to the malabsorption problems
- Malnutrition - people with inflammatory bowel disease may have malnutrition and deficiency in a number of nutrients, despite eating a healthy diet and this is because of the colon's malfunction and inability to absorb any nutrients properly or at all. Especially at risk of deficiency are the fat-soluble vitamins and this is because of the colon's inability to deal properly with fat absorption and these vitamins need some dietary fat in order to be absorbed properly: vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin K
- Weight loss - people with inflammatory bowel disease can experience weight loss, due to malabsorption of nutrients from food eaten, due to the colon's malfunction and inability to absorb nutrients properly or at all
In addition to this, two rare, but serious developments of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are:
- Inability of the blood to clot properly - this is a potentially very serious problem which can cause bleeding to occur internally and it is life threatening and an emergency
- Liver disease and jaundice - this is when there is serious disease of the liver, the skin and other body tissues can turn yellow (which can often be the first symptom of a serious liver disease) due to the jaundice. This yellow colouring is due to the colour of red blood cells in the bile
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Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) can become complicated and cause a number of further symptoms, some of which can be serious and life threatening:
- Abscess - if any part of the bowel becomes infected and inflamed, it can fill up with pus and cause an abscess to develop, which are treated by antibiotics. Sometimes the abscess needs to be drained if the antibiotics do not heal the infection properly
- Perforation - if the infected abscess bursts, it can cause a rupturing of the colon and pus can leak out
- Peritonitis - if the infected abscess that burst leaks pus into the peritoneum, causing wider-scale infection in the abdominal area. Peritonitis, if not dealt with very quickly can be fatal (surgery is required to get rid of the pus in the peritoneum and remove the part of the colon that is infected)
- Fistula - this is a small tunnel that links one organ to another which has been formed when an abscess erodes into a neighbouring organ. Fistulas most often occur between the bowel and vagina or the bladder and skin. Surgery is required to remove the fistula and antibiotics are also used to prevent further infection and reduce symptoms
- Intestinal obstruction - sometimes abscesses can cause scar tissue to be formed when it is healed, which is less flexible than normal tissue in the bowel and may cause a full or partial obstruction of the bowel which means food cannot pass through properly. A full obstruction of the bowel needs urgent surgery to open it up and prevent fatal consequences
- Severe internal bleeding - this can occur during a very severe episode of ulcerative colitis and cause heavy bleeding through the rectum. This condition is life threatening as the patient will need a blood transfusion and possibly surgery to remove the bowel if it does not stop bleeding
- Toxic megacolon - also known as acute dilation. This occurs during a severe episode of ulcerative colitis, which causes the transverse colon to get much bigger than normal and this is life threatening and needs to be treated in hospital with potassium and intravenous fluids or surgery to remove the bowel if it does not improve with treatment
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< 5: risk factors 7: when to see a doctor > Last reviewed: 31 July 2008 || Last updated: 14 February 2009
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NOTE: Mega doses of any type of vitamin, mineral, amino acid or herbal supplement cannot cure illnesses and in fact can be very dangerous and produce toxic side effects and interfere with medicine you are taking. Always ensure you consult your doctor before taking any type of complementary supplements.
Disclaimer: This guide is not intended to be used for diagnostic or prescriptive purposes. For any treatment or diagnosis of illness, please see your doctor.
