LIVER DISEASE ASSOCIATED WITH CROHN'S DISEASE

Extraintestinal Complications: Liver Disease

There are several complications of IBD related to the liver and bile ducts, which are closely connected to the intestine. The function of the bile ducts is to transport bile or waste from the liver, which is a digestive organ, to the upper small intestine. The liver may develop active inflammation, which usually subsides with appropriate treatment of IBD.

Serious disease involving the liver affects only about five percent of people with IBD. Low energy and easy tiredness tend to be the most common symptoms. Among the symptoms that appear with more advanced liver disease are itching, jaundice, fluid retention, fatigue, and a feeling of fullness in the upper abdomen. Blood tests can usually confirm the presence of liver disease, although an ultrasound, X-ray, or liver biopsy may be necessary to make the definitive diagnosis.

Fatty liver is the most common liver complication of IBD, but it is also linked with many other, unrelated conditions -- including pregnancy, diabetes, and obesity. It is caused by an abnormality in liver metabolism that results in the accumulation of fat. Because it is a fairly minor problem and causes no symptoms, it does not require any treatment as a rule.

Chronic active hepatitis is unusual in people with IBD, but if it does occur, it is more common in those with ulcerative colitis than in those with Crohn's disease. Antiviral therapy may be helpful

Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a particular form of inflammation and scarring that develops in the bile ducts. This condition may not improve with medical treatment for IBD and may ultimately require liver transplantation. The cause is not known and there is no effective medication for PSC. To correct severe narrowing of the bile ducts, a balloon-tipped tube may be inserted into the duct to enlarge it. Fortunately, the incidence of PSC is rare among people with IBD: Only about five percent of ulcerative colitis patients (and those are individuals with extensive disease) and one percent of Crohn's disease patients develop this condition. On very rare occasions, cancer of the bile ducts (cholangiocarcinoma) may develop. There is also an increased incidence of cancer of the colon in IBD patients who have sclerosing cholangitis. For more links to informationan and literature about PSC visit http://www.psc-literature.org.

On behalf of learning, and use as teaching tools for those of us who need to know about our disease, I have tried to supply you with as much information as I could find on all of the drugs, treatments and disorders associated with Inflammatory Bowel Diseases. I have tried to blend all facts supported by research and also from personal experiences of other IBD sufferers into one readable webpage, and any and all information presented here is not entirely from one source. Most information contained within these pages is found in the public domain. At times you may find information used from another site, and as with all copyrighted materials you may find on these pages, I claim fair use under sections 107 through 118 of the Copyright Act (title 17, U.S. Code). Click here for more info

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