title: Inflammatory bowel disease.
abstract: Inflammatory bowel disease is a complicated condition, including Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, microscopic colitis, and indeterminate colitis, that affects the intestine and several extraintestinal sites. There has been much debate regarding whether Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are distinct entities or if they exist along a continuum of the same disease process. In this article, the pathogenic mechanisms and clinical manifestations of inflammatory bowel disease are reviewed, as well as treatment options. Because Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are chronic diseases, they have an important economic effect on our healthcare system and the United States as a whole. Some newer and more expensive treatment options may provide overall cost savings in select patient populations because of decreased use of healthcare resources.
authors.affiliation: From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. nmartins@bidmc.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Noel B
authors.initials: NB
authors.lastname: Martins
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Peppercorn
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D019936:Probiotics; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha