Enemas Enemas have been popular for a long, long time. It makes sense that enemas were used historically; when individuals couldn’t take medicine by mouth, and before intravenous medication was common, there was only one route of administration left available! As humans paid more attention to cleaning themselves, it seemed logical to think that the [...]
Click here to download a PDF of this information. Inflammatory Bowel Disease Intestinal Anatomy To understand IBD, a review of gastrointestinal (GI) tract anatomy is helpful. This explanation is not complete, but it covers the basics. The digestive system consists of a long tube (alimentary canal) that varies in shape and purpose as it [...]
Click here to download a PDF of this information. Ulcerative Colitis Ulcerative colitis is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) consisting of fine ulcerations in the inner mucosal lining of the large intestine. Inflammation starts at the lower end of the colon, just above the anus, and extends upward in a continuous manner, to variable [...]
Diagnostic Tests and ProceduresWhen a health care professional suspects a patient is suffering from a gastrointestinal (GI) disease or disorder, or if a patient reports unexplained symptoms in their GI tract, technology offers valuable tools. Diagnostic tests and procedures can range from invasive to non-invasive, simple to more complex, and can help health care [...]
Treating Constipation with Laxatives Before heading to the laxative aisle at your local pharmacy to self-treat constipation, it’s important to be informed. With the many varieties and types of laxatives and therapies available, choosing the best one for your body’s needs, while avoiding those that are too aggressive, requires knowledge and understanding. Also, as with [...]
Probiotic Treatment for Kids with UC Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease characterized by fine ulcerations on the inner mucosal lining of the colon. The most common symptoms are diarrhea and rectal bleeding. Although there is no cure for UC, there are a number of treatments available, the most common of which [...]
Click here to download a PDF of this information. Ulcerative Proctitis Ulcerative proctitis is a mild form of ulcerative colitis, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) consisting of fine ulcerations in the inner mucosal lining of the large intestine that do not penetrate the bowel muscle wall. In this form of colitis, the inflammation begins [...]
Irrigation for Colostomies Question: I have a colostomy and someone suggested I could try irrigation to manage it. What is irrigation? Answer: Irrigations for colostomies involve the regular installation of moderate to large volumes of water to clear the colon of stool. Essentially, it is an enema into the stoma resulting in the clearing of [...]
Click here to download a PDF of this information. Constipation It is normal to have a bowel movement (defecate) anywhere from three times a day to three times a week, as long as the stool is soft and comfortable to pass. For those experiencing constipation, bowel movements tend to be less frequent, and they can [...]
Click here to download a PDF of this information. Crohn's Disease Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that can affect any area of the gastrointestinal tract, from the mouth to the anus, either in continuity or as isolated areas. The inflammation can involve the inner mucosal lining, up to the full thickness [...]
Click here to download a PDF of this information. Diverticular Disease Diverticular disease and diverticulosis are interchangeable terms meaning the presence of diverticula in the large intestine (colon). Diverticula are small sac-like out-pouchings of the colon lining that balloon through the outer colon wall, occurring most frequently in the lower section of the colon (sigmoid), [...]
Antibiotic Risk Factors for C. Difficile Associated Diarrhea Diarrhea is a common side effect of antibiotic use. However, when Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) bacteria are the culprits in post-antibiotic use diarrhea, there is an increased risk of morbidity and mortality. Clostridium difficile Commonly found in hospitals and care facilities, C. difficile are anaerobic gram-positive bacillus1. [...]
Sonia B. Glover: My Life With Crohn's Unless you experience Crohn’s disease firsthand, you could never imagine what such a debilitating and painful disease can do to a person’s life – physically and emotionally. I could describe my journey living with Crohn’s disease many ways – interesting, painful, heartbreaking, frustrating, draining, embarrassing, eye opening, and [...]
Medical Research Gastrointestinal Society The GI Society is currently focused on learning more about what patients are going through and is funding a number of surveys to learn the true patient experience. Some examples of these studies are listed below. The GI Society hosted a short survey from September 13-29, 2021, and shared [...]
Validated and Experimental Treatments for C. difficile When the standard treatment for Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) – which includes an antibiotic course of either metronidazole or vancomycin – fails to eradicate the offending bacterium, physicians currently have few options for treating their patients. Sadly, standard treatment fails to resolve CDI for 15-26% of patients.1 When [...]
Bismuth for IBD and IBS-D Researchers in Australia recently studied colloidal bismuth subcitrate (oral bismuth) as a possible long-term treatment for chronic, difficult to treat (intractable) diarrhea associated with some types of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D).1 The researchers chose to study this product instead of bismuth subsalicyclate (the active [...]
Fecal Transplant Might Help Treat Ulcerative Colitis Our Chief Executive Officer, Gail Attara attended the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organization’s (ECCO) 11th Congress during March 16-19, 2016 in Amsterdam. ECCO accepted a poster co-authored by Gail and five gastroenterologists on subsequent entry biologics, now called biosimilars. The conference hosted 6,265 delegates from 91 countries, all [...]
Click here to download a PDF of this information. Probiotics, Prebiotics, and the Microbiome Did you know that all multicellular organisms, including every animal and plant, are covered in a vast array of microorganisms? Microorganisms, also known as microbes, are extremely small (microscopic), living organisms, such as bacteria, viruses, yeast, parasites, and more. They [...]
Gaps in Care and Awareness of Fecal Microbiota Transplant for C. difficile The Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) launched a research project to determine how Canadian patients access fecal microbiota transplant (FMT). Currently, fecal transplant is approved in Canada as an alternative treatment for recurring Clostridioides difficile infection (formerly known as [...]
Medications for IBD (Crohn's and Colitis) Video Featuring Alan Low, BSc. (Pharm.), Pharm. D., RPh, ACPR, FCSHP, CCD Clinical Associate Professor, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, UBC Primary Care Pharmacist and Pharmacy Lead, BioPro Biologics Pharmacy biopropharmacy.ca Video Transcript If you have inflammatory bowel disease, often shortened as IBD, you might [...]
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