The two most common forms of inflammatory bowel disease are Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
Living with it
Active disease causes urgent and frequent diarrhoea, abdominal pain and fever, and severe pain when strictures cause a blockage. Mortality is low, but the impact on daily life is high, interrupting education, work and family life.
Medical and surgical treatment
Most patients are treated with medication, both for acute relapses and to maintain remission. Surgery ranges from resecting strictures and dealing with fistulas through to removing part or all of the bowel. Most ulcerative colitis patients who have a colectomy are offered an ileo-anal pouch to replace the rectum as a reservoir.
A joint plan
Professor El-Khoury works closely with gastroenterologists, pathologists and radiologists to form a plan for each individual patient, so that the timing of any surgery fits with the medical treatment rather than competing with it.
Professor El-Khoury will talk through the operation with you in the rooms, covering why it is being recommended, what it involves, the risks and the benefits. He also provides Royal Australasian College of Surgeons information sheets on the procedure so you can read them at home and bring questions back.
This page is general information, not medical advice. What applies to you depends on your history, your examination and your results. Bring your questions to the consultation.