Generally doctors will start off using the less powerful drugs such as the aminosalicylates, then work their way up through the different classes depending on how a person's body and disease responds to the treatment. The thought behind this is that there is no use in using some of the stronger drugs if it isn't necessary.
However, there is a new school of thought out there, especially for people who have moderate to severe forms of the disease. That thought is to start off with the strongest drugs such as the biologics. The thinking process behind this is that you can kick the disease into remission quicker by doing this. There have also been studies done that have shown that those who have moderate to severe forms of the disease will actually respond better to the lower classes of drugs when started out almost immediately on the biologics.
When taking biologics people will normally take another class of drugs that become a maintenance drug. The immunomodulators are very commonly the class of drugs used as the maintenance drugs. Both of these drugs will lower a person's immune system, making a person more prone to things like the common cold.
Corticosteroids will often be used for short periods of time. The are most often used when a person is flaring. They help to reduce the inflammation.There are different forms of the drugs to help those with Crohns and Ulcerative Colitis. Those with Ulcerative Colitis will most often use enema forms of this class of drugs. While taking them, a person must taper off them, and not stop them suddenly.
Antibiotics and aminosalicylates are generally used for those who mild forms of the disease. They usually have few if any side effects. If caught soon enough, the disease can be treated very effectively with these two classes of drugs.
Those are the basic treatments for treating those with IBD. One should always consider the potential side effects, and consult with a doctor before starting any treatment or before modifying their treatment.
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