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Colitis

by Marcus Peterson

Colitis is the medical term used to refer to an acute inflammatory condition of the colon. It is associated with the inflammation of the intestine and/or the rectum. Colitis causes inflammation and sores, called ulcers, in the top layer of the large intestine. The inflammation causes diarrhea, while the ulcers bleed and produce pus and mucus.

Colitis can afflict any gender, at any age. There are different types of colitis, including ulcerative colitis, pseudomembranous colitis and fulminant colitis. They have varying symptoms and one or more types can afflict patients at the same time.

Colitis can be diagnosed through inspection of fecal matter. Ulcerative and fulminant colitis may cause bloody diarrhea. This can result in high fever and anemia in patients. Pseudomembranous colitis results in terrible smelling diarrhea and abdominal pain. This kind of colitis is a bacterial infection. Without appropriate treatment it can be fatal.

Colitis can be diagnosed through colonoscopy. Anti-inflammatory and anti-diarrheal drugs are also prescribed to help cure colitis. Patients with colitis are usually treated with the drug sulfasalazine. Side effects may include nausea, vomiting, heartburn and weight loss. Adrenal steroids are administered in severe cases of colitis. Colitis patients carry a high risk of colon cancer. About 20 to 25 percent of ulcerative colitis patients eventually require surgery for removal of parts the colon because of massive bleeding, chronic debilitating illness, perforation of the colon or the risk of cancer.

Over 2 million people in the US are estimated to have colitis. Ulcerative colitis is most often found in people under the age of 30. The disease generally occurs in people in their 60s or older, though, and affects men and women equally.

Researchers believe that the body's immune system reacts to a virus or bacteria by causing ongoing inflammation in the intestinal wall. Some doctors are of the opinion that the immune system reaction may be a result, not the cause, of the disease.

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