Crohn’s disease

Summary

Crohn's disease is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). It causes swelling of the tissues (inflammation) in your digestive tract, which can lead to abdominal pain, severe diarrhea, fatigue, weight loss and malnutrition.

Inflammation caused by Crohn's disease can involve different areas of the digestive tract in different people, most commonly the small intestine. This inflammation often spreads into the deeper layers of the bowel.

Crohn's disease can be both painful and debilitating, and sometimes may lead to life-threatening complications.

There's no known cure for Crohn's disease, but therapies can greatly reduce its signs and symptoms and even bring about long-term remission and healing of inflammation. With treatment, many people with Crohn's disease are able to function well.

(Autoimmune Association, 2023)

Symptoms

In Crohn's disease, any part of your small or large intestine can be involved. It may involve multiple segments, or it may be continuous. In some people, the disease is only in the colon, which is part of the large intestine.

Signs and symptoms of Crohn's disease can range from mild to severe. They usually develop gradually, but sometimes will come on suddenly, without warning. You may also have periods of time when you have no signs or symptoms (remission).

When the disease is active, symptoms typically include:

• Diarrhea

• Fever

• Fatigue

• Abdominal pain and cramping

• Blood in your stool

• Mouth sores

• Reduced appetite and weight loss

• Pain or drainage near or around the anus due to inflammation from a tunnel into the skin (fistula)

Other signs and symptoms

People with severe Crohn's disease may also experience symptoms outside of the intestinal tract, including:

• Inflammation of skin, eyes and joints

• Inflammation of the liver or bile ducts

• Kidney stones

• Iron deficiency (anemia)

• Delayed growth or sexual development, in children

(Autoimmune Association, 2023)

Diagnostic Criteria

Under Investigation

Study Classification Criteria

Under Investigation

Diagnostic Tests

Under Investigation

Organized Autoimmunity

(Alternative Autoimmune Disease Classification: FIEM, MIEM or BIEM, or FEM, MEM or BEM)

1. sex predominance (is an autoimmune disease primarily found in genetic Females, Males, or equally in Both?)

   1. Under Investigation

2. Inherited and acquired gene variations that cause increased susceptibility

   1. Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) Associations

      1. Under Investigation

   2. Other Gene Variations (mutations)

      1. Under Investigation

3. Gene Triggering Environmental Exposures

   1. Infections

      1. COVID-19 (Chang et. al, 2023, found a significantly higher risk of inflammatory bowel disease following COVID-19 infection in a study of 3,814,479 participants)

   2. Toxins

      1. Under Investigation

   3. Stress

      1. Needs to be assessed for each patient

4. Multiple interactive and destructive immune system pathologies

   1. Under Investigation

Tissue-Type or Cell-Type Attacked

Under Investigation

Treatment(s)

• Tyruko (natalizumab-sztn), a biosimilar to Tysabri, “indicated for inducing and maintaining clinical response and remission in adult patients with moderately to severely active Crohn’s Disease with evidence of inflammation who have had an inadequate response to, or are unable to tolerate, conventional therapies and inhibitors of TNF-α (tumor necrosis factor, a substance in your body that causes inflammation)” (FDA Approved)

• Tysabri (natalizumab), “indicated for inducing and maintaining clinical response and remission in adult patients with moderately to severely active Crohn’s Disease with evidence of inflammation who have had an inadequate response to, or are unable to tolerate, conventional therapies and inhibitors of TNF-α (tumor necrosis factor, a substance in your body that causes inflammation)” (FDA Approved)

Managing Specialist(s)

• Gastroenterologist

Research Authors

Under Investigation

Research Institutions

Under Investigation

Average Time from Symptom Onset to Diagnosis

Under Investigation

Last Updated

September 05, 2023

References

Chang R, Yen-Ting Chen T, Wang SI, Hung YM, Chen HY, Wei CJ. Risk of autoimmune diseases in patients with COVID-19: A retrospective cohort study. EClinicalMedicine. 2023 Feb;56:101783. doi: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2022.101783. Epub 2023 Jan 10. PMID: 36643619; PMCID: PMC9830133.

Crohn’s disease. Autoimmune Association. (2023, April 22). Retrieved September 4, 2023 from https://autoimmune.org/disease-information/crohns-disease/