Crohn’s Disease – Common Questions

Transcript

So patients ask, “how long do I need to be on these medications?” That’s a very good question. It really depends. It depends what kind of medications patients are on. Certain medications we’re able to wean off. Whereas other medications, we like to keep long term. In general, what patients need to understand is Crohn’s disease is a chronic autoimmune condition. Meaning, if you stop your medications it is very likely that the inflammation will recur and you may not be symptomatic right off the bat. And so a lot of patients say, but I’m doing really well. Unfortunately, over time the inflammation builds up, and then patients get into trouble once it’s too late. And so I always encourage patients that when they found the medication that works for them as long as their doctor deems it to be safe long term, that they should stay on the medication, assuming they don’t have any side effects or there’d been no complications. Because once you get Crohn’s disease under control, it’s very, very important to keep the treatment on board. Oftentimes patients get tired of being on a medication. The problem is that when you stop sometimes these medications, they may not necessarily work again down the road if you try to use them again. And so it’s very important to work closely with your physician to make sure that a treatment, regimen is developed that suits your quality of life, your personality, your needs, your disease severity and that you can be on long term.