Definition of Colitis
Ulcerative colitis is the swelling or the inflammation of the large intestine or the colon. There are many different reasons for the occurrence of ulcerative colitis. This could be due to certain acute and chronic infections, some inflammatory problems like Crohns colitis, lymphocytic and collagenous colitis, lack of proper blood circulation or ischemic colitis and past radiation of the large bowel. Some of the symptoms of colitis are bloating and pain in the abdomen, diarrhea and stools containing blood, dehydration and an increase in gas from the intestine. The symptoms are very similar to that of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and therefore very important that you consult your doctor to have it properly diagnosed.
The doctor or the health care provider can help in diagnosing colitis by putting a long flexible tube inside the rectal region. This procedure is known as a flexible sigmoidoscopy or a colonoscopy and helps in diagnosing the actual condition of certain portions of the colon. Biopises, which are taken at the time of these tests, will also show any changes, which have taken place due to the inflammation. An MRI scan or a CT scan of the abdomen, an X-ray of the abdomen and Barium enemas are some of the other tests which will help in identifying the symptoms of colitis.
The treatment for colitis involves treating the main cause of the medical condition. The particular infection or inflammation will have to be treated properly. The prognosis will be different according to the disease. Excessive bleeding might take place and the patient could develop sores or ulcers. Sometimes there could a hole in the colon or the colon might significantly increase, this is known as a toxic mega colon. A doctor needs to be contacted immediately if symptoms like pain the abdomen, blood in the stools and an expanded or a distended abdomen are present.
There are many different types of colitis. CMV colitis is a viral infection of the colon, Crohns disease is otherwise known as regional enteritis, Cryptosporidium enter colitis, ischemic colitis or the lack of proper blood circulation, necrotizing enter colitis, pseudo membranous colitis and ulcerative colitis are just some of the various types of colitis. The symptoms of the specific condition need to be taken into account in order to determine the causes and also for the doctor to recommend the course of treatment in order to cure and heal the state of health.
