Kristy Ashby

Health 1020
Term paper
Crohns Disease

Crohns disease is named after Dr. Burrill B. Crohn, who first described the disease in
1932 along with colleagues Dr. Leon Ginzburg and Dr. Gordon D. Oppenheimer, Crohns disease
belongs to a group of conditions known as Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD). Crohns disease
is a chronic inflammatory condition of the gastrointestinal tract.
Crohns disease affects people very differently. People are diagnosed between levels of
mild, moderate, or severe. The way one person feels when in a Crohns flare may be totally
different than one someone else is in a flare. There are often triggers that can make Crohns
become active or go into a flare. Everyones triggers are also different. The best way to
determine your triggers is to keep a food journal that also documents your feelings or current life
situation. You record the stress levels because anxiety and stress is one trigger that many people
with Crohns associate flares with. Some symptoms include; Abdominal pain and distention,
Tenderness in the belly, severe diarrhea, low grade fever, bloody stool, weight loss, severe
malabsorption.
My son was diagnosed with Crohns in March of 2013. He lost 14 pounds in just a few
weeks; He had the low grade fever and bloody stool. His immune system started attacking his
growth plates making it hard for him to walk. When he finally had a colonoscopy and endoscopy

they found Crohns granules in all 4 areas, his esophagus, his small intestines, his large intestines
and his rectum. He was diagnosed with severe Crohns.
The best way to diagnose Crohns is a colonoscopy and an endoscopy. Blood work often
has markers in it to show there is some sort of auto immune issue going on in the body. When
having these scopes the Dr. is looking for inflammation of the intestines.
Only 5% of people are diagnosed under the age of 18. Only 1% are diagnosed under the
age of 10. Austin, my son was 9 years old. There is a small tendency for males to have Crohns a
little more often than females. The worst years are the years they go through puberty because the
hormone levels are off. It can mess with the amount of medication that they need.
Treatments vary depending on the severity of the disease, how long they have had it and
the age of the patient. Some drugs have not been FDA approved for children but they are
approved for adults. We started with Prednisone (a steroid) there are some scary side effects
connected with this and children so Austin didnt stay on it very long. Then we went to
Methotrexate. This is a medication that you give with a shot once a week. That didnt do enough
to control his flares so we moved on to Remicade (an infusion). We did these at Primary children
Medical center. It took anywhere from 4 to 6 hours depending on how busy the hospital is at the
time. After 2 years of this medication, Austin, built antibodies against the Remicade. The stats
are, 70% of patients will grow antibodies to fight against it within 10 years. The cost of
Remicade can run anywhere from $4000 to $16,000 per infusion depending on the dosage and
the place you receive the infusion. Austin did his every 8 weeks, but the length can be shortened.
Next we tried Humira, another biological drug. This is administered at home with a pre filled

shot. The cost of this drug is also very expensive. Insurance covers a lot of the cost, but there are
also pharmaceutical rebate programs available for Remicade and Humira to help with the costs.
There are a lot of organizations out there to help raise awareness and funds for Crohns
disease. One of the best foundations is CCFA. They hold Take Steps Walk every year at Wheeler
farm to raise money for Crohns research.
Austin was in remission (no active signs of Crohns) for 2 years. He is currently active
again; we are hoping Humira will help him reach remission status again very soon. He also has
his own Facebook page set up. It is for people to follow his journey, to help raise awareness and
to help raise money for research for a cure. ALL4AUSTIN

Works Cited
Ashby, Austin. Austins life Kristy Ashby. 25 November 2015. Talk.
Bradley, John. The Foul Bowel: 101 ways to survive and thrive with crohns disease. Yknot
Publishing, 2010. book.
CCFA. https://secure3.convio.net/ccfa/site/Donation2?
df_id=14620&14620.donation=form1&s_src=HQXQ15X1DQCSDGGX&gclid=CK2kx6
7_vckCFYcBaQodNj4MTQ. 1 December 2015. Web. 1 December 2015.
Guthry, Dr. Crohns in children Kristy Ashby. 25 October 2015. Talk.
Hunter, Professor John. Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Great Britain: Clays Ltd., 2010. book.