Is pregnancy safe for women with Crohn's disease?

Research has shown that the course of pregnancy and delivery is usually not impaired in women with Crohn's disease. Even so, women with Crohn's disease should discuss the matter with their doctors before pregnancy. Most children born to women with Crohn's disease are unaffected. Children who do get the disease are sometimes more severely affected than adults, with slowed growth and delayed sexual development in some cases.

source: http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/crohns/index.htm

Hope Through Research for Crohn's Disease

Researchers continue to look for more effective treatments. Examples of investigational treatments include

• Anti-TNF. Research has shown that cells affected by Crohn's disease contain a cytokine, a protein produced by the immune system, called tumor necrosis factor (TNF). TNF may be responsible for the inflammation of Crohn's disease. Anti-TNF is a substance that finds TNF in the bloodstream, binds to it, and removes it before it can reach the intestines and cause inflammation. In studies, anti-TNF seems particularly helpful in closing fistulas.
  
  
• Interleukin 10. Interleukin 10 (IL-10) is a cytokine that suppresses inflammation. Researchers are now studying the effectiveness of synthetic IL-10 in treating Crohn's disease.
  
  
• Antibiotics. Antibiotics are now used to treat the bacterial infections that often accompany Crohn's disease, but some research suggests that they might also be useful as a primary treatment for active Crohn's disease.
  
  
• Budesonide. Researchers recently identified a new corticosteroid called budesonide that appears to be as effective as other corticosteroids but causes fewer side effects.
  
  
• Methotrexate and cyclosporine. These are immunosuppressive drugs that may be useful in treating Crohn's disease. One potential benefit of methotrexate and cyclosporine is that they appear to work faster than traditional immunosuppressive drugs.
  
  
• Natalizumab. Natalizumab is an experimental drug that reduces symptoms and improves the quality of life when tested in people with Crohn's disease. The drug decreases inflammation by binding to immune cells and preventing them from leaving the bloodstream and reaching the areas of inflammation.
  
  
• Zinc. Free radicals--molecules produced during fat metabolism, stress, and infection, among other things--may contribute to inflammation in Crohn's disease. Free radicals sometimes cause cell damage when they interact with other molecules in the body. The mineral zinc removes free radicals from the bloodstream. Studies are under way to determine whether zinc supplementation might reduce inflammation.

source: http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/crohns/index.htm

For More Information About Crohn's Disease

Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America, Inc.
386 Park Avenue South, 17th Floor
New York, NY 10016-8804
Phone: 1-800-932-2423 or (212) 685-3440
Email: info@ccfa.org
Internet: www.ccfa.org

Pediatric Crohn's & Colitis Association, Inc.
P.O. Box 188
Newton, MA 02468
Phone: (617) 489-5854
Email: questions@pcca.hypermart.net
Internet: http://pcca.hypermart.net

Reach Out for Youth with Ileitis and Colitis, Inc.
15 Chemung Place
Jericho, NY 11753
Phone: (516) 822-8010

United Ostomy Association, Inc.
19772 MacArthur Blvd.
#200
Irvine, CA 92612-2405
Phone: 1-800-826-0826 or (949) 660-8624
Fax: (949) 660-9262
Email: uoa@deltanet.com
Internet: www.uoa.org

source: http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/crohns/index.htm