Inflammatory bowel disease or (IBD) is a condition of the digestive tract that is characterized with a number of symptoms like redness, swelling, and pain of specific areas in the gut. Chron’s disease and Ulcerative Colitis are the most common types with similar symptoms including diarrhea, abdominal pain, fatigue, weight loss, and fever as well.
IBD is a condition that should be medically address to avoid any serious complications along with effective lifestyle changes for better results.
Causes of IBD
The perfect cause of IBD is unknown. Earlier a poor diet and stress were consider as the leading factors, but they are perceived only as an aggregator of the symptoms and not the cause.
Latest research points towards a disturbed immune system that attacks the healthy cells of the digestive tract. Sometimes, people with family history of IBD are also found to fall prey to the disease.
Symptoms of IBD
The symptoms of IBD can vary from person to person and can be severe at times. The patient might go in a flare-up or a remission condition. No matter they are mild or severe, once you feel you are developing any gastric disorder, consider meeting a doctor.
- Diarrhoea
- Fever and fatigue
- Abdominal pain and cramping
- Blood in the stool
- Lack of appetite
- Weight loss
Do not ignore the above symptoms and meet a gastroenterologist who can suggest you the best treatment plan. The medicines prescribed can be bought from online medical store to continue with uninterrupted treatment.
Diagnosis of Irritable Bowel Disease
If your doctor suspects you having IBD, he might suggest a few tests to make sure of the existence of the disease. Mostly the symptoms are correlated with test results to finally diagnose the disease. A few of these tests are listed below:
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Blood tests:
A blood sample is collected to check for any signs of inflammation or anaemia. Any infection that might cause GI disturbance is also checked in the blood test.
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Stool test:
A sample of the stool is tested to check for the presence of any blood cells or other signs of IBD.
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Colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy:
It is one of the important tests for GI disorders which checks for other health conditions as well. In this test, a thin tube with a light camera at one end is insert into the anus of the patient and move further slowly. The patient remains under sedation. The tube is guide along the lower part of the large intestine and then slowly towards the entire large intestine and small portion of the small intestine. The images appear on the screen which is study. During the process, a biopsy sample is also take. The entire study is complete to look for any inflammation, ulcer, bleeding, or any other diseased condition of the intestine.
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Upper endoscopy:
In this process, an endoscope is insert through the mouth of the patient under light sedation to view the GI tract, stomach, and portions of small intestine. The lining of these internal organs is view for detail study.
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Small bowel follow-through:
It is complete after the upper endoscopy to have a clear look on the parts of intestine where endoscope cannot go. In this procedure, the patient drinks a liquid with a dye that shows up in x-ray. As the dye moves down the intestine, the radiologist takes images to look for any underlying problem.
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CT scan:
everal x-ray images cavbe take from different angles to look for any sign of inflammation. The images are studies together to derive any significant clue about the presence of IBD.
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CT or MR enterography:
These procedures are complete after drinking a special dye that helps in the development of image. While CT enterogrpahy uses x-ray images, MR enterography uses images through magnetic field. The dye colours the digestive tract and helps the doctor study the entire tract and locate problem areas, if any.
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Capsule endoscopy:
This is one of the latest procedures that uses a pill-shaped camera that travels through the entire digestive tract to send the video to a screen. The doctor watches the video and finds out the problem area or the reason for the symptoms.
Once diagnose, a course of treatment can be initiate to treat the symptoms of IBD. The treatment might include anything from antibiotics to anti-inflammatory drugs, immune system suppressor, anti-diarrheal medication, pain relievers, iron supplements, nutritional support and more. Sometimes, even surgery is also recommend. If the disease is not that serious then stick to a good food habit, make nutritional changes as suggested and stick to the medicines prescribed to check the problem at an early stage.
You can buy the prescription drugs online and have the right stock of your medicines to continue your treatment without any gap. Find the best online medical store and place an order for quick home delivery.
