About Digestive Disorders (Symptoms, Treatments, etc)

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There are eight parts to this section.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome...

In gastroenterology, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), also called spastic colon, is a functional bowel disorder characterized by mild to severe abdominal pain, discomfort, bloating and alteration of bowel habits. In some cases, the symptoms are relieved by bowel movements. Diarrhea or constipation may predominate, or they may alternate (classified as IBS-D, IBS-C or IBS-A, respectively). IBS may begin after an infection (post-infectious, IBS-PI) or a stressful life event. Other functional or pain disorders and certain psychological conditions are more common in those with IBS.

Although there is no cure for IBS, there are treatments which attempt to relieve symptoms, including dietary adjustments, medication and psychological interventions. Patient education and a good doctor-patient relationship are also important.

Several conditions may present as IBS including celiac disease, mild infections, parasitic infections like giardiasis, several inflammatory bowel diseases, functional chronic constipation and chronic functional abdominal pain. In IBS, routine clinical tests yield no abnormalities, though the bowels may be more sensitive to certain stimuli, such as balloon insufflation testing. The exact cause of IBS is unknown. The most common theory is that IBS is a disorder of the interaction between the brain and the gastrointestinal tract, although there may also be abnormalities in the gut flora or the immune system.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irritable_Bowel_Syndrome

Gastritis...

Gastritis is an inflammation of the lining of the stomach. There are many possible causes. Gastritis is caused by excessive alcohol consumption, prolonged use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, also known as NSAIDs, such as aspirin or ibuprofen, or infection with bacteria, such as Helicobacter pylori. Sometimes gastritis develops after major surgery, traumatic injury, burns, or severe infections. Certain diseases, such as pernicious anemia and chronic bile reflux, or autoimmune disorders, can cause gastritis as well. Gastritis may also occur in those who have had weight loss surgery resulting in the banding or reconstruction of the digestive track. The most common symptom is abdominal upset or pain. Other symptoms are indigestion, abdominal bloating, nausea, and vomiting, or a feeling of fullness or burning in the upper abdomen. Blood in vomit or black stools may be a sign of bleeding in the stomach, which may indicate a serious problem.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastritis

Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)...

The most common symptoms of GERD are heartburn, regurgitation, trouble swallowing (dysphagia), and chest pain. Less common symptoms include pain with swallowing (odynophagia), excessive salivation, and nausea. Several other atypical symptoms are associated with GERD, but there is good evidence for causation only when they are accompanied by esophageal injury. These symptoms are chronic cough, laryngitis (hoarseness, throat clearing), asthma, and erosion of dental enamel. Some people have proposed that symptoms such as pharyngitis, sinusitis, recurrent ear infections, and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis are due to GERD; however, a causative role has not been established.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastroesophageal_reflux_disease

Lactose intolerance...

Lactose intolerance is the inability to metabolize lactose, a sugar found in milk and other dairy products, because the required enzyme lactase is absent in the intestinal system or its availability is lowered. It is estimated that 75% of adults show some decrease in lactase activity during adulthood worldwide. The frequency of decreased lactase activity ranges from nearly 5% in northern Europe to more than 90% in some Asian and African countries.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactose_intolerance

Heartburn...

Heartburn or pyrosis is a painful and burning sensation in the esophagus, just below the breastbone usually associated with regurgitation of gastric acid. The pain often rises in the chest and may radiate to the neck, throat, or angle of the jaw. Heartburn is also identified as one of the causes of chronic cough, and may even mimic asthma. Despite its name, heartburn actually has nothing to do with the heart. It is so called because of a burning sensation of the breastbone where the heart is located although some heart problems do have a similar sensation to heartburn. Compounding the confusion is the fact that hydrochloric acid from the stomach comes back up the esophagus because of a problem with the cardiac sphincter, a valve which misleadingly contains the word "cardiac", referring to the cardia as part of the stomach and not, as might be thought, to the heart.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heartburn

Ulcerative Colitis...

Ulcerative colitis (Colitis ulcerosa, UC) is a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Ulcerative colitis is a form of colitis, a disease of the intestine, specifically the large intestine or colon, that includes characteristic ulcers, or open sores, in the colon. The main symptom of active disease is usually constant diarrhea mixed with blood, of gradual onset. Ulcerative colitis is, however, a systemic disease that affects many parts of the body outside the intestine. Because of the name, IBD is often confused with irritable bowel syndrome ("IBS"), a troublesome, but much less serious condition. Ulcerative colitis has similarities to Crohn's disease, another form of IBD. Ulcerative colitis is an intermittent disease, with periods of exacerbated symptoms, and periods that are relatively symptom-free. Although the symptoms of ulcerative colitis can sometimes diminish on their own, the disease usually requires treatment to go into remission.

Ulcerative colitis occurs in 35-100 people for every 100,000 in the United States, or less than 0.1% of the population. The disease tends to be more common in northern areas. Although ulcerative colitis has no known cause, there is a presumed genetic component to susceptibility. The disease may be triggered in a susceptible person by environmental factors. Although dietary modification may reduce the discomfort of a person with the disease, ulcerative colitis is not thought to be caused by dietary factors. Although ulcerative colitis is treated as though it were an autoimmune disease, there is no consensus that it is such. Treatment is with anti-inflammatory drugs, immunosuppression, and biological therapy targeting specific components of the immune response. Colectomy (partial or total removal of the large bowel through surgery) is occasionally necessary, and is considered to be a cure for the disease.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulcerative_colitis

Peptic Ulcer...

A peptic ulcer, also known as ulcus pepticum, PUD or peptic ulcer disease, is an ulcer (defined as mucosal erosions equal to or greater than 0.5 cm) of an area of the gastrointestinal tract that is usually acidic and thus extremely painful. As much as 80% of ulcers are associated with Helicobacter pylori, a spiral-shaped bacterium that lives in the acidic environment of the stomach, however only 20% of those cases go to a doctor. Ulcers can also be caused or worsened by drugs such as aspirin and other NSAIDs. Contrary to general belief, more peptic ulcers arise in the duodenum (first part of the small intestine, just after the stomach) than in the stomach. About 4% of stomach ulcers are caused by a malignant tumor, so multiple biopsies are needed to make sure. Duodenal ulcers are generally benign.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peptic_ulcer

Crohn's disease...

Crohn's disease (also known as granulomatous colitis and regional enteritis) is an inflammatory disease of the digestive system which may affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract from mouth to anus. As a result, the symptoms of Crohn's disease can vary significantly among afflicted individuals. The main gastrointestinal symptoms are abdominal pain, diarrhea (which may be visibly bloody), vomiting, or weight loss. Crohn's disease can also cause complications outside of the gastrointestinal tract such as skin rashes, arthritis, and inflammation of the eye.

The precise cause of Crohn's disease is not known. The disease occurs when the immune system attacks the gastrointestinal tract and for this reason, Crohn's disease is considered an autoimmune disease. This autoimmune activity produces inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract, and therefore Crohn's disease is classified as an inflammatory bowel disease.

Like many other autoimmune diseases, Crohn's disease is believed to be genetically linked. The highest risk occurs in individuals with siblings who have the disease. Males and females are equally affected. Smokers are three times more likely to develop Crohn's disease. Crohn's disease affects between 400,000 and 600,000 people in North America. Prevalence estimates for Northern Europe have ranged from 27–48 per 100,000. Crohn's disease tends to present initially in the teens and twenties, with another peak incidence in the fifties to seventies, although the disease can occur at any age.

Unlike the other major types of inflammatory bowel disease, there is no known drug based or surgical cure for Crohn's disease. Treatment options are restricted to controlling symptoms, putting and keeping the disease in remission and preventing relapse.

The disease was independently described in 1904 by Polish surgeon Antoni Leśniowski and in 1932 by American gastroenterologist Burrill Bernard Crohn, for whom the disease was named. Crohn, along with two colleagues, described a series of patients with inflammation of the terminal ileum, the area most commonly affected by the illness. For this reason, the disease has also been called regional ileitis or regional enteritis.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crohn%27s_disease