title: Diagnosis and treatment of colonic disease in AIDS.
abstract: The colon is a frequent site of gastrointestinal complications in patients with HIV infection, and these colonic disorders increase in frequency as immunodeficiency worsens. The most common clinical manifestations of colonic disease in AIDS are diarrhea, lower gastrointestinal bleeding, and abdominal pain. Toxic megacolon, intussuseption, typhlitis, idiopathic colonic ulcer, and pneumatosis intestinalis also have been described. In the HIV-infected patient with preserved immunity, the most common cause of colitis is bacterial, but as the degree of immunodeficiency worsens, opportunistic pathogens (CMV, protozoa, mycobacteria, fungi) and neoplasms become more frequent. The frequent use of antibiotics, chemotherapeutic agents, and frequent hospitalization increase the susceptibility to cf2Clostridium difficule cf1colitis. Endoscopy plays an integral role in the management of many colonic disorders in AIDS.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University of Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama 35294-0007, USA.
authors.forename: K E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Mönkemüller
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Wilcox
mesh_terms: D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy; D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D000328:Adult; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001706:Biopsy; D003082:Colectomy; D003106:Colon / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D003108:Colonic Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D003113:Colonoscopy; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents