Contents:
- Medical Video: What is Ulcerative Colitis?
- What is pancolitis?
- What are the signs and symptoms of pancolitis?
- What causes colitis?
- How to treat pancolitis?
Medical Video: What is Ulcerative Colitis?
Inflammation of the intestine is often associated with appendicitis or inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). But when inflammation specifically attacks only the large intestine, this condition is called pancolitis. To find out more about pancolitis, let's look at the discussion below.
What is pancolitis?
Pancolitis is inflammation of the entire lining of the large intestine. Pancolitis includes chronic inflammation, which can cause the growth of boils in the intestine or even make the intestines hurt.
What are the signs and symptoms of pancolitis?
- Abdominal pain and cramps
- Nausea and vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Anal bleeding
- Muscle cramps / spasms
- Fever and fatigue
- Reduced appetite
- Weight loss
Over time, inflammation in the lining of the intestine causes injury. The intestinal wall then loses the ability to process food, leftovers to be thrown away, and absorb water. This causes diarrhea. Small wounds that develop in the intestine then cause you to experience abdominal pain and bloody bowel movements.
Reduced appetite, fatigue, and weight loss can eventually trigger anorexia.
Other symptoms can also be affected by inflammation of the large intestine, including joint pain (usually in the knee, ankle and wrist). It does not rule out the symptoms of pancolitis can also affect the eyes.
If not treated properly, inflammation of the large intestine can cause fatal complications such as severe bleeding, intestinal perforation (intestinal perforation),hypertrophic intestine (stretching of the intestine), to inflammation of the lining of the stomach. Pancolitis also makes you more at risk for colon cancer.
What causes colitis?
Quoted from Healthline, pancolitis thas no definite cause.The most common cause of inflammation of the large intestine is ulcerative colitis, but it can also be caused by C. difficile infection. In addition, this condition is often associated with common inflammatory disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis.
The following can also be a trigger factor for colitis or even make symptoms worse, namely:
- Weakened immune system
- Heredity, people with family members who have this condition often have inflammatory bowel disease.
- Most eat foods high in protein, such as meat and fish. This can cause cell poisoning and injury to the intestine.
- Age. Usually, pancolitis is often diagnosed in people under 35 years, but can happen to anyone.
- Gender influences a person's risk of experiencing intestinal inflammation. Ulcerative colitis or pancolitis is more common in men, while Crohn's disease is more common in women.
- Smoke. Smokers have a higher risk of developing colitis than nonsmokers and ex-smokers.
How to treat pancolitis?
Inflammation of the intestines can affect anyone. Unfortunately, there is no specific medicine to treat this condition. You can ask for a method of prevention and tell any changes in your diet by the doctor.
Your doctor may recommend drugs to treat inflammation and reduce symptoms of inflammatory bowel. Commonly used drugs are aminosalicylic, antibiotics (like metronidazole, ciprofloxacin, rifaximin), corticosteroid drugs, and drugs to prevent diarrhea and stomach cramps.
In addition to medication, surgery can also be performed to remove the entire large intestine and rectum. Instead, the doctor will install a special pocketed device such as a catheter to connect the tip of the intestine to the anus, to allow you to defecate as usual. This procedure is called ileoanal anastomosis.
If the installation of a bag is difficult or impossible, the surgeon will make a permanent opening in the abdomen and install a bag to collect bowel movements.
