| Theme |
Surgical therapy for Crohn's disease -- Essentials for physician |
| Title |
Meaning of surgical treatment in Crohn's disease |
| Author |
Hideki Yamada |
Department of Surgery, Teikyo University |
| Author |
Souichirou Ishihara |
Department of Surgery, Teikyo University |
| Author |
Toshiaki Watanabe |
Department of Surgery, Teikyo University |
| [ Summary ] |
Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease with repeated periods of exacerbation and remission. Medical therapy plays a central role in management of the disease. Surgical therapy is indicated for complications such as intestinal obstructions, fistula, abscess and bowel perforations. However, surgery is not a curative treatment for Crhon's disease. Bowel resection is often performed, however, it is frequently associated with postoperative recurrence of symptoms. Repeated resections may result in short bowel syndrome. Thus, stricture-plasty is preferred, when possible, instead of resection. Recently, anti-TNF-α antibodies such as infliximab have been shown to be highly effective in medical treatment of Crohn's disease, and also are expected to reduce postoperative recurrence. |