title: General principles of medical therapy of inflammatory bowel disease.
abstract: Ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease are chronic gastrointestinal diseases that affect patients in the prime of their lives. Because inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients generally live a normal lifespan, chronic medical therapy for IBD must be tolerable, simple to adhere to, and have as few side effects as possible. This article discusses the impact of IBD on quality of life and stresses the importance of appropriate and individualized medical therapy. To help clinicians determine the efficacy of particular IBD medications, this article offers a brief, practical interpretation of clinical, endoscopic, and quality-of-life end points used in clinical trials. Finally, it provides a summary of the current accepted medical therapies for ulcerative colitis adn Crohn's disease and recommendations for using these medications in clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: Gastroenterology Division ASBII, Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 75 Francis Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA. sfriedman1@partners.org
authors.forename: Sonia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Friedman
mesh_terms: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000636:Aminosalicylic Acids / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001379:Azathioprine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016572:Cyclosporine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D000069285:Infliximab; D015122:Mercaptopurine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008727:Methotrexate / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011788:Quality of Life
chemical_list: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones; D000636:Aminosalicylic Acids; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D016572:Cyclosporine; D000069285:Infliximab; D015122:Mercaptopurine; D001379:Azathioprine; D008727:Methotrexate