Management of acute severe ulcerative colitis

Authors: Doherty, Glen A; Cheifetz, Adam S

Source: Expert Review of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Volume 3, Number 4, August 2009 , pp. 395-405(11)

Buy & download fulltext article:

Price: $73.00 plus tax (Refund Policy)

Abstract:

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic relapsing and remitting inflammatory disorder that can generally be managed successfully with maintenance oral medications. However, approximately 15% of patients with ulcerative colitis will develop a severe exacerbation and require hospitalization. While many patients with acute severe ulcerative colitis will respond to a short course of intravenous corticosteroids, up to a third will fail to improve. In these patients with steroid-refractory colitis, the choice is between rescue medical therapy with ciclosporin or infliximab, or surgery. Well-timed rescue medical therapy is generally safe when administered by experienced physicians, and is effective in the majority of cases. Surgery is unavoidable in some cases, but is the treatment of choice in others. While ileal pouch-anal anastomosis offers the prospect of life without a permanent ileostomy, there are issues with its long-term functional outcome.

Keywords: ciclosporin; colectomy; corticosteroid; infliximab; management; ulcerative colitis

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1586/egh.09.24

Affiliations: 1: Center for Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Division of Gastroenterology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA., Email: gdoherty@bidmc.harvard.edu

Publication date: 2009-08-01

More about this publication?

Expert Review of Gastroenterology and Hepatology provides comprehensive coverage of state-of-the-art research and clinical advancements in the field as they occur.
Editorial Board
Information for Authors
Submit a Paper
Subscribe to this Title
Information for Advertisers
Terms & Conditions
Information for Librarians
Free Trials
ingentaconnect is not responsible for the content or availability of external websites