Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis

Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are the two inflammatory bowel diseases. Inflammation of the digestive tract is common to both, but aside from that, they are distinct illnesses.

Crohn's can attack any part of the digestive tract from the esophagus to the colon. Ulcerative colitis, on the other hand, is limited to the colon - the large intestine. The inflammation in Crohn's disease affects all layers of the digestive tract. With ulcerative colitis, the inflammation remains on the most superficial layer of the tract.

One of Crohn's major symptoms is crampy stomach pain. The pain worsens after eating. Diarrhea is a prominent feature, and the diarrhea often is at its worst during the night. Rectal bleeding, night sweats, fever and weight loss are some of its other calling cards.

Medical science is still ignorant of its cause, but the immune system appears to be involved, and that bit of information comes into play in devising medicines for it.