Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTypes of Crohn’s DiseaseSymptomsCausesDiagnosisTreatmentPrognosisCoping
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Types of Crohn’s Disease
Symptoms
Causes
Diagnosis
Treatment
Prognosis
Coping
Ileocolitisis inflammation of the end of thesmall intestine(ileum) and a portion of thelarge intestine(colon). It is the most common type of Crohn’s disease, which is part of a group of conditions known asinflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Ileocolitis is a chronic disease, meaning it persists over a long period of time. There currently is no cure for ileocolitis or Crohn’s disease. It most often comes on gradually and worsens over time.
Verywell / Jessica Olah
Other Types of Crohn’s Disease
Other types of Crohn’s disease include:
Ileocolitis Symptoms
Symptoms of ileocolitis may vary over time. You might experience symptoms daily, or you could have weeks or years with no symptoms at all, called remission.
Common symptoms of ileocolitis include:
The exact cause of ileocolitis and other types of Crohn’s disease is unknown. However, health professionals believe there are some things that may play a role. These include:
Treatments for ileocolitis include medications, diet changes, bowel rest, and surgery. Treatment may look different from one person to another with ileocolitis.
The main goals of treatment are to decrease the inflammation in your intestines, reduce symptoms, prevent flare-ups, and keep you in remission.
Medications
The most common medications for other forms of Crohn’s disease are anti-inflammatory drugs, such as oral 5-aminosalicylates (5-ASAs) and corticosteroids. These work to reduce the inflammation in your GI tract.
However, people who have colitis and ileal disease are treated with a biologic like infliximab as a primary therapy. This is because having small bowel disease and/or stricturing disease is an indicator of advanced disease.
Many providers may give only biologics from the beginning rather than doing a step-up approach. Some providers may prescribe5-aminosalicylatesfor people who are newly diagnosed with ileocolitis and whose symptoms are mild,
Corticosteroidsare another common medication for ileocolitis. They are generally used only as a short-term treatment because there are many possible side effects, such as nausea, heartburn, weight gain, and increased risk of osteoporosis, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
Immunomodulatorscan have serious side effects, so your doctor might prescribe them only if you have severe ileocolitis and aren’t responding to other treatments.
Diet Changes
While ileocolitis may not be the result of your diet, changing what you eat may help reduce symptoms. Keeping a food diary can be helpful in identifying specific foods to avoid during a flare-up.
In general, your doctor or dietitian may recommend that you makechanges to your diet, especially during times of flare-ups, such as:
Overall, during times of remission, your diet can remain flexible and should include a variety of foods from all food groups in order to maintain good nutrition.
If you are having difficulty identifying any trigger foods, your diet has become very limited, or you are losing weight without trying to, meet with a registered dietitian.
Bowel Rest
If you are experiencing severe symptoms without relief from other treatments, your doctor may prescribe bowel rest.This involves drinking only certain liquids or not eating or drinking anything for a few days.
Bowel rest may be done at home but is sometimes done in the hospital while you receive nutrition through a feeding tube or an IV. In most cases, your symptoms will decrease as your digestive tract heals with the bowel rest.
Surgery
Whilesurgerydoes not cure ileocolitis or Crohn’s disease, it can preserve portions of your intestines while giving you a better quality of life.
A 2012 study found that 60% of people with Crohn’s disease had surgery at some time during 20 years with the condition.However, a 2021 study found the rate of surgery has been declining significantly.If you are not responding to medications or diet changes and your ileocolitis symptoms are severely affecting your quality of life, you may be a candidate for surgery.
You might also require surgery if you develop any complications, such as afistula(abnormal connection between two body cavities), fissure,intestinal obstruction, or life-threatening bleeding.
There are different types of surgery used to treat Crohn’s disease. However, it often involves removal of the diseased segment of the bowel (resection) and then joining the two ends of healthy bowel together (anastomosis).
While surgery can put you in remission for many years, Crohn’s disease may return later in life.
There is no known cure for ileocolitis or Crohn’s disease. It is a chronic condition, although symptoms can vary over time and you may be in remission for several years at a time.
Sometimes you might have flare-ups that cause more severe symptoms and greatly impact your quality of life. However, with proper treatment, most people are able to lead productive lives.
Symptoms of ileocolitis can affect your quality of life, as well as your relationships and work life. However, talking to and seeking support from family, friends, therapists, and other healthcare professionals can help.
Summary
Ileocolitis is the most common type of Crohn’s disease. It displays chronic inflammation of the end of the small intestine and a portion of the large intestine. Symptoms often include diarrhea, abdominal pain or cramping, and weight loss.
There is no cure for the condition, which usually comes on gradually and worsens over time. Medications and surgery may be used to treat symptoms and complications.
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9 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Symptoms & causes of Crohn’s disease.Hou JK, Abraham B, El-Serag H.Dietary intake and risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease: a systematic review of the literature.Am J Gastroenterol. 2011;106(4):563-573. doi:10.1038/ajg.2011.44National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Diagnosis of Crohn’s disease.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Treatment for Crohn’s disease.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Eating, diet, & nutrition for Crohn’s disease.Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation.Crohn’s disease treatment options.Tsai L, Ma C, Dulai PS, Prokop LJ, Eisenstein S, Ramamoorthy SL, Feagan BG, Jairath V, Sandborn WJ, Singh S.Contemporary risk of surgery in patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease: A meta-analysis of population-based cohorts.Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2021 Oct;19(10):2031-2045.e11. doi:10.1016/j.cgh.2020.10.039National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Definition and facts for Crohn’s disease.Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.Emotional factors fact sheet.
9 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Symptoms & causes of Crohn’s disease.Hou JK, Abraham B, El-Serag H.Dietary intake and risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease: a systematic review of the literature.Am J Gastroenterol. 2011;106(4):563-573. doi:10.1038/ajg.2011.44National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Diagnosis of Crohn’s disease.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Treatment for Crohn’s disease.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Eating, diet, & nutrition for Crohn’s disease.Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation.Crohn’s disease treatment options.Tsai L, Ma C, Dulai PS, Prokop LJ, Eisenstein S, Ramamoorthy SL, Feagan BG, Jairath V, Sandborn WJ, Singh S.Contemporary risk of surgery in patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease: A meta-analysis of population-based cohorts.Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2021 Oct;19(10):2031-2045.e11. doi:10.1016/j.cgh.2020.10.039National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Definition and facts for Crohn’s disease.Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.Emotional factors fact sheet.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Symptoms & causes of Crohn’s disease.Hou JK, Abraham B, El-Serag H.Dietary intake and risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease: a systematic review of the literature.Am J Gastroenterol. 2011;106(4):563-573. doi:10.1038/ajg.2011.44National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Diagnosis of Crohn’s disease.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Treatment for Crohn’s disease.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Eating, diet, & nutrition for Crohn’s disease.Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation.Crohn’s disease treatment options.Tsai L, Ma C, Dulai PS, Prokop LJ, Eisenstein S, Ramamoorthy SL, Feagan BG, Jairath V, Sandborn WJ, Singh S.Contemporary risk of surgery in patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease: A meta-analysis of population-based cohorts.Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2021 Oct;19(10):2031-2045.e11. doi:10.1016/j.cgh.2020.10.039National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Definition and facts for Crohn’s disease.Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.Emotional factors fact sheet.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Symptoms & causes of Crohn’s disease.
Hou JK, Abraham B, El-Serag H.Dietary intake and risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease: a systematic review of the literature.Am J Gastroenterol. 2011;106(4):563-573. doi:10.1038/ajg.2011.44
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Diagnosis of Crohn’s disease.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Treatment for Crohn’s disease.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Eating, diet, & nutrition for Crohn’s disease.
Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation.Crohn’s disease treatment options.
Tsai L, Ma C, Dulai PS, Prokop LJ, Eisenstein S, Ramamoorthy SL, Feagan BG, Jairath V, Sandborn WJ, Singh S.Contemporary risk of surgery in patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease: A meta-analysis of population-based cohorts.Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2021 Oct;19(10):2031-2045.e11. doi:10.1016/j.cgh.2020.10.039
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Definition and facts for Crohn’s disease.
Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.Emotional factors fact sheet.
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