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What is Crohn's? Definition Crohn's Disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that may affect any part of the digestive system from a sufferer’s mouth to anus. Crohn's disease is also known as regional enteritis - regional due to the local aspect of inflammation, and enteritis which literally means inflammation of the intestine. Other times the disease is called regional ileitis - due to inflammation of the ileum, the most commonly affected area among sufferers which is located in the small intestine. It is believed that Crohn's is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks healthy cells in the digestive track causing inflammation. Crohn's is characterized by alternating periods of flare-ups when symptoms are present and periods of remission in which symptoms go away. American gastroenterologist Burrill Bernard Crohn, for which the disease is named, observed the disease in patients and categorized it based on their common symptoms. Crohn's disease persists throughout life and there currently is no known cure. |
