The most common disease that occurs in the pathology of the gastrointestinal tract is called colitis. The symptoms and treatment of adults and babies are almost the same. Most adults are unaware that such an ailment lies in their body, and begin therapy when it is too late.
Symptoms and treatment of intestinal colitis in adults directly depend on the type of disease.
What is colitis in adults?
Intestinal colitis is a disease characterized by inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract.
There are two main forms of the disease: acute and chronic.
Acute colitis is the most common pathology of the gastrointestinal tract, which can occur at any age. The lesion in this form is shallow, but very extensive, since all organs of the gastrointestinal tract suffer. It occurs due to irritation of the mucous membrane, characterized by the loss of electrolytes and fluid. Symptoms in the form of dysbacteriosis, dehydration and toxemia lead to a rather strong destruction of the mucous layer.
By origin, the following types of the acute form of this disease can be distinguished:
- chemical colitis (affected by alcohol, smoking, fumes, poisons and severemetals);
- household (eating poor-quality food, harmful products);
- mechanical (constipation, intestinal obstruction);
- resulting from allergic pathologies - hay fever, bronchial asthma (allergic colitis);
- ischemic nature (thrombosis and abdominal trauma);
- infectious colitis.
In the chronic form, the digestive, transport, protective function is disturbed with changes in the intestinal mucosa.
The acute form (non-infectious or infectious colitis) is the mildest. But it can turn into ulcerative colitis. In turn, with untimely treatment of the intestine, it threatens with more serious consequences, ulcers on the mucous membrane and incessant pain.
If you do not carry out timely treatment of ulcerative colitis, it will quickly develop into necrotizing. And this is fraught with sepsis.
Types of colitis
It is worth considering in more detail the types of colitis, of which there are many:
- Spastic colitis. Irritable bowel syndrome (spasmodic colitis, IBS) is expressed by bloating, spasms and pathology of the intestinal tract. This disease is not serious. The disease is considered a functional disorder. IBS occurs against the background of nervous overexcitation, fatigue, stress. The causes of this type of colitis are not known.
- Pseudomembranous colitis. Severe, acute illness that develops as an aggravation of antibacterial therapy. Patients (10–20%) show Clostridium difficile. The disease is formed due to the resistance of Clostridiumdifficile to drugs that inhibit the functioning of the intestinal microflora. It is necessary to recognize the disease in a timely manner, cancel the antibiotic that activated the diarrhea, and treat the intestines with other drugs.
- Erosive colitis. Inflammation of the lining of the stomach and duodenum with ulcers on the surface of the duodenum close to the stomach. The erosive form will become unsafe in superficial colitis, leading to ulcers.
- Ischemic colitis. Suppuration in the gastrointestinal tract, provoked by damage to the veins, which does not lead to tissue necrosis. A variety of diseases and pathological processes lead to a decrease in blood flow in the mucosa and chronic ischemia of the colon. There are key categories: vein destruction, small vessel involvement, non-occlusive factors, occlusion of major arteries. Intestinal blood flow failure affects colon function badly.
- Ray. Radiation lesions of the intestinal tract are caused by ionizing radiation on the body. In cancer patients receiving radial therapy for tumors of the lymph nodes or small pelvis, radial destruction of the intestinal tract occurs more often. Medical signs will not always be accompanied by an acute mucosal defect.
- Alcoholic colitis. Occur in people who often drink a lot of alcohol. In this case, permanent pancreatitis with pathology of fat metabolism is formed. When exposed to the ordinary flora of the large intestine of alcohol, it is replaced by a pathogenic one, which causes inflammation. Alcoholic colitis will disappear if the sick person stopsdrink. It will not be superfluous to treat the intestines with medications.
- Collagenic colitis. A form of permanent inflammatory diseases of the intestinal tract. Histologically, lymphocytic inflammation is characterized by a diffuse increase in the number of interepithelial lymphocytes. In some cases, over time, the transformation of lymphocytic colitis into collagenous occurs. The latter is characterized by a histological subepithelial deposition of collagen fibers with a thickness of one to ten centimeters. The background remains unclear.
Reasons
Since the forms of the disease have completely different origins, the causes of the disease should be divided. The acute form appears extremely quickly and has a violent onset.
The main causes that affect the appearance of acute colitis in adults are:
- Enterovirus infection (cause of infectious colitis).
- Use of medications that have an extremely negative effect on the gastrointestinal tract.
- Ingestion of a variety of plants and fungi that have poison in their structure.
- Influence of pesticides.
- Food poisoning.
- Salmonellosis.
- Dysentery.
- The effect of ethyl alcohol on the gastrointestinal tract of an adult.
- Poisoning with alcohol substitutes.
The chronic form is much more common than the previous one. Most patients with colitis are unaware of the presence of this disease in the body. This form appears due to a neglected acute illness. The most common causes of colitis are:
- presence of parasites in the body, namely opisthorchiasis, ascariasis;
- protozooses (trichomoniasis, amoebiasis);
- excessive alcohol consumption, regardless of its strength;
- constipation;
- pathology of the gastrointestinal tract;
- irritable bowel syndrome;
- autoimmune failures;
- gastritis and ulcer.
Often the disease occurs in childhood. The reason for this is malnutrition, non-compliance with the diet, excessive consumption of spicy, s alty, fatty and fried foods. Certain harm is caused by carbonated drinks and dry food. Children are more susceptible to viral colitis than adults.
Chronic colitis, which is caused by parasites, is manifested due to insufficient heat treatment of consumed products. Poorly processed fish and meat will cause opisthorchiasis, dirty hands and water - amoebiasis. Colitis is almost never caused by birth defects.
Colitis symptoms
The main symptoms of colitis include:
- loose stools alternating with constipation;
- pain in the abdomen (usually it gets worse before a bowel movement);
- occasional nausea;
- bloating;
- digestion disorder;
- burp.
The disease will also affect the appearance and gener althe patient's well-being. Symptoms of colitis indicating the presence of the disease are as follows:
- pale skin;
- grey complexion;
- dull brittle hair;
- rapid fatigue;
- poor concentration;
- memory violation;
- bad dream.
Disruption of the functions of the gastrointestinal tract leads to a rapid decrease in immunity, which often leads to the addition of colds and infectious diseases.
Diagnosis
Diagnosis of colitis is quite simple and does not involve any complicated procedures:
- The acute form of the disease can be diagnosed with the help of clearly defined symptoms that are characteristic of this disease and have some external signs, an epidemiological history.
- It is mandatory to study the patient's feces by bacteriological research.
- In order to make the correct and most accurate diagnosis, the attending physician can use a coprogram, on the basis of which a subsequent diagnosis is possible.
- If there is a need for additional studies to more accurately formulate the diagnosis and establish the actual state of the patient's gastrointestinal tract, rectoscopy may be prescribed.
The diagnosis of chronic colitis is somewhat different from the diagnosis of its acute form. First of all, the doctor who will treat the patient does the following:
- takes the history of the patient in accordance with his medical record;
- questionsdirectly to the patient himself, finds out the presence of complaints;
- external examination of presumed lesions by palpation;
- laboratory testing of stool and urine samples;
- use of instrumental diagnostics.
Pay attention! Even if symptoms are severe, a doctor should diagnose and treat bowel syndrome (irritable bowel).
Pharmacy preparations
Often people complain to doctors about causeless vomiting and nausea, frequent flatulence and pain in the abdomen. These symptoms may indicate the development of infectious colitis of the intestine, which has a chronic or acute nature of the disease.
Drug treatment for irritable bowel syndrome in adults depends on the type of bowel disorder present. So, for irritable bowel syndrome, it is important to reduce peristalsis.
If the disease worsens, it may be possible to use intestinal antiseptics. But they should not be abused: the duration of admission should be no more than 14 days, since the drugs affect not only pathogenic bacteria, but also normal microflora.
Drug List
To treat irritable bowel, doctors recommend the following medications:
- Antibiotics that will have an antibacterial and antimicrobial effect: Ecofuril and Furazolin.
- Intestinal antiseptics for exacerbation of colitis: "Ftalazol",Sulfasalazine, Salazopyridazine.
- Enzymes to improve digestion: Creon and Creazim.
- Drugs to relieve intestinal spasms and weaken peristalsis: No-shpa, Odeston, Iberogast.
- Prebiotics and probiotics for the normalization of intestinal microflora: Linex, Bifiform.
- Drugs to improve peristalsis: Loperamide, Imodium.
- Adrenoblockers to block nerve impulses that respond to adrenaline and norepinephrine: Doxazosin, Yohimbine, Nicergoline. Important! These drugs must be used under the strict supervision of a physician!
- Astringent and enveloping agents will protect the intestines from irritation and reduce mucus production: potassium carbonate, "Acidin-pepsin", hydrochloric acid, "Panzinorm-forte".
Treatment of colitis with folk remedies
For the treatment of intestines with folk remedies, an adult should use the following products:
- Dill and mint.
- Medicinal fees.
- Alder buckthorn.
- Juices.
- Parsnips and garlic.
To treat the bowel symptoms of colitis, namely to reduce stomach distension, dill oil is mixed with a liquid (ratio of one to ten). It should be taken at least three times a day. Substances in mint reduce nausea, prevent the appearance of vomiting. One spoon of this culture is brewed and taken up to three times a day.
Colitis fees
There are several types of fees that can be used to treat intestinal colitis:
- Tea that has a laxative effect is prepared from 15 g of cilantro seeds, 15 g of licorice roots, 80 g of buckthorn roots. Pour and boil (one tablespoon per glass), taken at bedtime.
- With colic, an infusion of the same amount of anise, fennel and mint, 10 g each, will help. A little more chamomile should be added. Pour the resulting mixture with boiling water (800 ml) for ten hours. Drink three to four times a day.
- Chamomile, calamus, fennel and valerian should be mixed in equal proportions (optimally - on a spoon). Steam a spoonful of the mixture for half a liter of water, let it brew and drink 50 grams every three hours.
- Boiled buckthorn bark helps with loose stools. The use depends on the result obtained, in case of inactivity of the effect, it is necessary to increase the amount.
- Various juices of natural origin cope well with such diseases.
- Carrot squeeze is used for loose stools. Be sure to take on an empty stomach.
- A garlic drink will restore digestive functions to normal, increase appetite, after taking any milk drink is used.
Colitis prevention
Since colitis is the most common disease of the digestive system, which is characterized by simultaneous inflammation of the small and large intestines and is infectious or non-infectious, in order not to get sick with this disease, it is necessaryfollow simple rules:
- When the first signs of infectious colitis appear in the digestive system, it is necessary to treat them in a timely manner.
- If a helminthic invasion occurs, and the presence of parasites is found, then it is necessary to apply methods to accelerate their removal from the body.
- Follow the rules of rational and proper nutrition, eat small portions, avoid "dry snacks" and do not eat on the go.
- If it is necessary to perform antibiotic therapy, prebiotics should be used, which will help restore intestinal microflora.
- Refuse self-medication, do not take medication without first consulting a doctor.
- It is highly desirable to stop smoking, drinking alcohol and other bad habits, because they cause both chemical and allergic colitis.
It is very important that the acute form does not become chronic. And for this you need to timely determine the symptoms and treatment of intestinal colitis.
