Ulcerative colitis

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic colitis of unknown etiology, with lesions primarily confined to the mucosa of the colon, manifesting as inflammation or ulceration, often involving the rectum and distal colon but can extend proximally to involve the entire colon. Its clinical characteristics include persistent or recurrent mucous bloody stools, abdominal pain accompanied by varying degrees of systemic symptoms, but patients with only constipation or no bloody stools should not be overlooked. Attention should be paid to extra-intestinal manifestations such as joints, eyes, mouth, liver, and spleen in past medical history and physical examination. Although complete resection of all diseased rectum and colon can completely cure the disease, the price to pay is the potential for lifelong abdominal ileostomy.Both ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease belong to the category of inflammatory bowel diseases. These two conditions are characterized by recurrent intestinal ulcers. Patients often exhibit symptoms such as diarrhea, mucous bloody stools, and abdominal pain, and these symptoms are quite similar. Therefore, even doctors sometimes find it difficult to make a definitive diagnosis. The difference between the two is that Crohn's disease may affect various parts of the digestive tract (such as the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and colon), while the impact of ulcerative colitis is often limited to the large intestine.