LATINOS AND ULCERATIVE COLITIS: CAUSES, SYMPTOMS AND TREATMENTS

DEFINITION OF ULCERATIVE COLITIS

Ulcerative Colitis is generally defined as inflammation of the rectum and some or all of the colon. It is one of the two forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), the other form being Crohn's disease. Ulcerative Colitis can have mild symptoms or symptoms bad enough to require hospitalization, depending on how severe the disease is.

CAUSES

Genetic Link within a family.
Enviromental Factors

Bacteria
Virus
Diet

A Western diet, one which is high in animal fat and proetein, and low in grains, fruits and vegetables. See Colitis Cookbook for an example diet.

Autoimmune Disorder

-An infection occurs in the body, and the immune system kills the infected cells as well as the healthy cells around the infection.In Ulcerative Colitis, it kills the cells that line the walls of the intestine.

Stress

-Stress is NOT a cause of Ulcerative Colitis, however, when someone with Ulcerative Colitis is stressed, their chances of having a flare up are increased.

SYMPTOMS

1. PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS:

Soft stools
Frequent bowel movements
Blood in stool
Abdominal pain
Anemia,
Weight loss
Joint pain
Eye and skin problems
Side effects due to medication.

2. MENTAL SYMPTOMS:

Minor depression
Decreased motivation
Social isolation.

TREATMENT

The goal of treatment for physicians is to increase the quality of a patient's life by decreasing or eliminating the patient's symptoms.

MEDICATIONS

Aminosalicylates
Corticosteriods
Immunosuppressive Drugs

Used because long-term use of corticosteriods can be toxic.
They reduce the required dose of corticosteroids.
They can take several months to start working.

Nicotine Patches

Patients with acute cases of active (not in remission) Ulcerative Colitis can use nicotine patches to relieve some of their symptoms.
Smoking has been proved to decrease your risk for Ulcerative Colitis. HOWEVER, smoking increases your risk for Crohn's disease, so it's a no win situation.

A patient with Ulcerative Colitis may also have other problems, such as depression.It is very important to treat these problems, because if they are not treated, then even the best medical treatment will not be effective on the patient.

Patient education is vital with Ulcerative Colitis!

REFERENCES

This web page was developed by Jennifer Ross to fulfill a requirement of the class CHI 21: Health Issues in the Chicano/Latino Community taught by Seline Szkupinski Quiroga in the Chicana & Chicano Studies Program at the University of California at Davis, Fall 1998.