Understanding IBD: Crohn’s Disease and C. diff

I had no idea what Crohn’s Disease was until I got to college. I went from knowing absolutely nobody with CD to knowing so many! I can list three of my close friends who have Crohn’s just off the top of my head. Why am I just now starting to meet people with this disease? Why don’t I know more adults with this disease? While it’s not uncommon to develop CD as a child, the average age of onset is 15 to 40.

Histology of a healthy colon: here you can see that the lining is smooth and there aren’t any inflamations (Granulomas). (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intestinal_gland)

Symptoms of Crohn’s Disease include diarrhea, bleeding from the anus, cramping, fever, weight loss, fatigue, and constant urges to use the bathroom. C. diff, while fundamentally different at its core, is often mistaken as Crohn’s Disease. A person with Crohn’s Disease will show most of the same symptoms of C. diff, and can even contract C. diff more easily with Crohn’s Disease. A difference between the two is that, while it is widely understood that C. diff is caused by harmful bacteria releasing toxins into the body, it’s still not quite known exactly why people develop Crohn’s Disease. Some research points to heredity and genetics, while some points to diet and environment.

Histology of a Crohn’s Disease-infected colon: here you can see that the cells of the lining aren’t smooth, causing uncers. There are also Granulomas, which look like circles or globs in the tissue. (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Crohn's_disease_-_colon_-_intermed_mag.jpg)

Before I get into the specifics of these issues, I’ll explain the difference between a disease and an infection. With diseases, the body’s own immune system, which is trying to protect its host from pathogens, destroys its own cells, tissues, and organs in the process of trying to destroy invaders. In people with Crohn’s Disease, the good bacteria in the intestines and stomach are mistaken for invaders, and the lining of these organs release more cells from the blood than normal. With such a high rate of cell release, inflammation occurs in the intestines and stomach.

Histology of C. diff-infected colon: here you can see that, while the image is different from that of the Crohn’s Disease-infected colon, the lining still has ulcers and tehre are still groupings of inflammation in the tissue. (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Colonic_pseudomembranes_intermed_mag.jpg)

C. diff, or Clostridium difficile, is similar to Crohn’s Disease in that it causes inflammation in the stomach and intestines, but is not caused by the host’s own immune system. Instead, it is caused by toxin-producing bacteria, and is usually contracted from antibiotics or a hospital setting. Where Crohn’s Disease is chronic and there is no immediate cure, C. diff usually stops after the patient has discontinued taking the antibiotics that caused the inflammation.

Besides the fact that both Crohn’s and C. diff cause stomach inflammation, why am I talking about both of them? They both cause a lot of discomfort (some cases more than others), but I’m setting up to talk about two things:

1. The research of C. diff, combined with the research of Crohn’s, is being used to discover cures and methods to treat both, since the symptoms of the two issues are so similar.

2. A patient with Crohn’s Disease is more likely to contract C. diff than someone with a normal immune response system, especially in a hospital setting.

There is so much research being done on a combination of these issues, which is causing many breakthroughs within the medical community, such as research that is slowly proving the causes of Crohn’s and C. diff, and alternatives to antibiotics for Crohn’s Disease that cause C. diff. Keep reading my posts to learn more about the recent findings on immune-related diseases and what methods are being used to discover treatments and cures for these issues.