Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)

What is inflammatory bowel disease?

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a condition where the small or large intestine becomes inflamed.

Sign and symptoms

The main symptoms of IBD are diarrhea, bloating, stomach pain, cramping and weight loss. IBD comes and goes. It can "flare up" and your child will have symptoms. At other times, your child will not have symptoms. This is called remission. Flare-ups and remission may occur at different times for different people.

There are two types of IBD: Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

• Crohn's disease is a type of inflammatory bowel disease that can cause inflammation anywhere in the digestive tract between the mouth and the anus.
• Ulcerative colitis is a type of inflammatory bowel disease that can cause inflammation in the large bowel of the gastrointestinal tract (also known as the colon).

Inflammatory bowel disease is not the same as irritable bowel syndrome.

Causes

Even though there have been many scientific studies, researchers do not know exactly what causes IBD. They do know that it can run in families. You are more likely to get IBD if you have a first-degree relative, such as a brother or sister, who has it. You are even more likely to get it if that brother or sister is your identical twin. Anyone can get IBD at any age.

Digestive system

More information about Crohn’s disease can be found here.

More information about Ulcerative colitis can be found here.