Pathology & Clinical IBD Flashcards
what 2 diseases cause inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)?
- Crohn’s disease
- ulcerative colitis
True or False.
IBD is chronic.
True
what is Crohn’s disease?
= chronic inflammatory and ulcerating condition of the GI tract that can affect anywhere from the mouth to the anus
where is Crohn’s disease most common?
= terminal ileum and colon
who does Crohn’s disease affect?
= young patients
- more common in males
where can you get Crohn’s disease?
= some have only small bowel involvement
= some have colonic/anal disease only
= some have both
- viable involvement of stomach, oesophagus and mouth
what are 7 symptoms of Crohn’s?
- abdominal pain
- small bowel obstruction
- diarrhoea
- bleeding PR
- anaemia
- weight loss
- tender abdomen
describe the clinical course of Crohn’s disease?
- chronic
- exacerbations & remission
- un-predictable response to therapy
(some patients go into lasting remission within 3 years of diagnosis)
what 2 tests should be done in patients with suspected Crohn’s disease?
- endoscopy
- mucosal biopsy
what would an endoscopy show in Crohn’s disease?
= patchy, segmented disease with skip areas (lesions) anywhere in GI tract
what is a histological feature of Crohn’s disease?
= chronic active colitis with (non-caseating) granuloma formation
= increased chronic transmural inflammatory cells in the lamina propria and crypt branching with granulomas
describe Crohn;s disease in an unlucky patient?
= doesn’t respond to medical therapy (steroids)
= bowel obstruction
= require surgery
describe the typical late stage appearance of Crohn;s disease?
= stricturing of terminal ileum with thickening of bowel wall & fat wrapping
= deep fissuring ulceration destroying mucosa
= deep fissuring producing cobble-stoning of mucosa
= pseudo polyps may be seen (not common)
= deep fissures (knife like in appearance)
what is a key feature seen in Crohn’s disease?
= transmural inflammation
what are 9 complications of Crohn’s disease?
1) malabsorption
2) Fistulas
3) Anal disease
4) Intractable disease
5) Bowel obstruction
6) perforationn
7) malignancy
8) amyloidosis
9) others (extra-intestinalassociation)
- rarely toxic megacolon
describe the causes and effects of malabsorption as a consequence of Crohn’s disease?
Causes
= iatrogenic (short bowel syndrome) due to repeated resections and recurrences
Effects
= hypoproteinemia, vit defieicny, anaemia
= gallstones
describe fistulas, as a complications to Crohn’s disease?
= vesicocolic = enterocolic = gastrocolic = recto vaginal = tuboovarian abscess = blind loop syndrome
describe 5 anal diseases that can occur as a complication of Crohn’s disease?
- sinuses
- fissures
- skin tags
- abscesses
- perineum falls apart
describe intractable disease as a complication of Crohn’s disease?
- failure to tolerate or respond to medical therapy
- continuous diarrhoea or paint
- may require surgery
what genes are Crohn’s associated with?
= HLA-DR1 and HLA-DQw5
what are 5 environmental triggers of Crohn’s disease?
- smoking increases risk
- infectious agents (viral, mycobacterial) causes similar pathology
- vasculitis (could explain segmental distribution)
- sterile environment therapy
Describe the aberrant immune response in Crohn’s disease?
= persistent activation of T cells and macrophages
= excess pro-inflammatory cytokine production
= maybe alterable by change intestinal microflora “probiotics”
what is ulcerative colitis?
= chronic inflammatory disorder confined to colon and rectum
where does inflammation occur in ulcerative colitis?
= mucosal and sub-mucosal inflammation
describe who can present with ulcerative colitis?
- young people
+ can occur in any age - more common in males
where about does ulcerative colitis occur?
= confined to colon & rectum
- nearly always involves the rectum
= continuous & confluent extending proximally for varying lengths.
True or false.
Ulcerative colitis is continuous and confluent not segmented.
True