Learn Everything You Need to Know About Colitis

Infants with allergic colitis

Allergic colitis is a disorder that can affect newborns, typically within the first few months of life. In newborns, the illness can cause symptoms such as reflux, excessive spitting up, and fussiness.

 

potential blood specks in a baby’s feces

Doctors aren’t sure what causes allergic colitis. One widely held belief is that infants with allergic colitis have an allergic or hypersensitive reaction to particular components of breast milk. However, a review of papers published in 2020 suggested that a protein allergy, whether from breast milk, cow’s milk, or formula, could play a role.

Eosinophilic colitis is a kind of allergic colitis that can manifest in newborns experiencing these symptoms. Its reasons are also unknownTrusted Source. However, it is most likely related to a protein allergy.

Doctors will frequently advise the birthing parent to follow an elimination diet, which gradually eliminates items known to contribute to allergic colitis. Cow’s milk, eggs, and wheat are a few examples. If the baby’s allergic colitis symptoms go away, these foods were likely the Source of the problem.

 

Monoclonal antibodies, such as those used to treat trusted Source inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), may also be employed in severe cases.

Additional reasons

Other colitis causes include parasitic infection, viral infection, and bacterial food poisoning. In addition, if your large intestine has been treated with radiation, you may get the disease.

Who is prone to colitis?

Each form of colitis is connected with a unique set of risk factors.

You are more likely to develop UC if you are: between the ages of 15 and 30 (most frequent) or between the ages of 60 and 80, white, or of Ashkenazi Jewish origin.

have a UC family member

If you are using long-term antibiotics, hospitalized, have chemotherapy, are on immunosuppressant drugs, are older, or have previously had PC, you are more likely to develop PC.

You are more likely to develop IC if you are over the age of 50, have or are at risk of having heart disease, or have a family history of heart disease.

suffer from heart failure,

have low blood pressure, and have had an abdominal surgery

Symptoms

You may encounter one or more of the following symptoms depending on your condition:

abdominal cramps or bloating in your abdomen

unanticipated weight loss

diarrhea with or without blood in your stool need to clear your bowels urgently chills or fever vomiting

Diagnosis

A doctor may inquire about the frequency of your symptoms and when they first appeared. Then, the doctor will conduct a thorough physical examination and use diagnostic tests such as colonoscopy, which involves threading a camera on a flexible tube through the anus to view the rectum, and colon sigmoidoscopy, which is similar to a colonoscopy but only shows the rectum and lower colon stool samples.

Abdominal imaging, such as MRI or CT scans, ultrasonography, which can be useful depending on the area being scanned, and barium enema, an X-ray of the colon after it has been injected with barium, helps make images more images visible.

Treatment Treatments seek to alleviate symptoms and can vary depending on factors such as:

age overall physical condition kind of colitis