Are There New Ulcerative Colitis Medicines Being Investigated?

Research into new ulcerative colitis treatments is currently being conducted in numerous universities and medical research facilities. Approximately 270 clinical trials aimed at finding new ulcerative colitis treatments are either underway at present or have recently been completed. These numbers come from the National Institutes of Health in the United States. More than 600,000 individuals in the U.S. alone - and millions more around the world - could benefit from new ulcerative colitis drugs and therapies developed in these trials.

Around three hundred deaths occur due to ulcerative colitis each year in the United States, so it's not typically fatal. Nonetheless, it is a serious digestive condition that accounts for more than 80,000 hospitalizations a year. Ulcerative colitis medications are prescribed by doctors in the United States more than two million times annually.

Ulcerative colitis is a disorder that arises from inflammation in the lining of the colon and intestines. This inflammation results in ulcers that bleed and produce pus..

Currently, there are no cures for ulcerative colitis. Medications for ulcerative colitis have been developed (see below) that relieve the pain from symptoms. These drugs are also beneficial because they can decrease inflammation, lower the chances of complications, reduce blood and nutritional deficits, and arrest further progression of the illness. Plus, ulcerative colitis medicine may help damaged tissues heal, prevent new flare ups, and lower the necessity of surgery in the future.

Your doctors will choose ulcerative colitis treatments and medications based on any possible complications you may be experiencing and the section of the colon or intestines where the disease is located. He or she will also consider how advanced the disorder has become.

Patients who are still in the mild to moderate range will generally receive aminosalicylates as a first course of treatment. Sulfasalazine or mesalamine are two of the most frequently used medications in these cases. Aminosalicylates basically increase the possibility of remission, help keep the disorder inactive, and decrease any current inflammation. Generally, aminosalicylates will keep mild or moderate cases of ulcerative colitis in remission, which is regarded as a period of time in which you experience no symptoms.

Sometimes however, aminosalicylates will not be effective. The next choice of medications would then be corticosteroids. Corticosteroids are generally used only as long as it takes to bring inflammation under control. As soon as inflammation goes down, your physician will probably recommend that you start taking aminosalicylates again.

When neither aminosalicylates nor corticosteroids bring about remission, your doctor will probably have to try other medications. Leading the list of these medications would be immunomodulators, cyclosporine, and infliximab. These could help in preventing your immune system from causing inflammation in your colon and intestines.

If you are pregnant and have ulcerative colitis, it's important to talk to your doctor about which medications are appropriate. Aminosalicylates and corticosteroids are generally safe for women who are pregnant, especially if your doctor believes your disorder may be more harmful to your unborn child than any effects of the medicine. There are a number of ulcerative colitis medicines your doctor can prescribe that are appropriate for different stages of your pregnancy and the severity of your symptoms.

A number of recent research projects have demonstrated that the nicotine patch may help reduce the symptoms of ulcerative colitis. Researchers have not been able to determine, however, whether the nicotine patch really inhibits flare ups. It's also unclear how long benefits of using the patch last. Plus, nicotine obviously has other side effects and can be addictive. Because of this, most doctors will only recommend the nicotine patch if all other medications have failed.

As noted above, hundreds or researchers and medical scientists are conducting studies to learn why we get ulcerative colitis, the damage it causes to the colon and intestines, and new treatments that are more effective than what we have now. Ulcerative colitis sufferers can take heart knowing that new treatments and medications may soon be developed thanks to these research efforts.