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It's curious that they will cover Stelara or Skyrizi but not branded Humira, Stelara and Skyrizi are both sexy newer anti-IL-23 drugs and are far more expensive (based on list price) than the older Humira and Remicade anti-TNF drugs.

All blood in the stool is concerning, but as a general rule, a little bit of blood can often look like a lot more than it really is. So if it just consists of occasional bloody streaks on the stool or tissue, and your son does not appear to be pale, weakened, and anemic, you are probably safe...

There is definitely no cure for Crohn's in sight. But thanks to the arsenal of modern medications, Crohn's has joined the ranks of diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes, lupus, HIV, and some forms of cancer that can't be cured but in most cases can be successfully managed to the point...

There has been research on the topic. This statistical study of Crohn's vs no Crohn's patients showed that the Crohn's patients were at a significantly higher risk of developing dry eye symptoms: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37833664/

Correct. I have neither NOD2 nor ATG16L1 allelic abnormalities. But I do have ileal Crohn's disease.

Celiac disease could cause both of those test results, although the calprotectin tends to go higher with active IBD than it does with celiac. And of course celiac disease is another GI disease. Some non-GI conditions could certainly lower the hemoglobin, but it would probably not raise fecal...

The low hemoglobin, positive fecal blood, high CRP, and high fecal calprotectin are all consistent with IBD. But the scopes will be the key to getting a diagnosis. Until then just sit tight and try not worry too much (Impossible for a parent, I know).

I've been on Stelara for 6 years now, and I haven't had any of those symptoms, or at least not that I've associated with the drug. I do get mild brain fog and/or energy crashes sometimes, but I associated those with getting old since I had them before Stelara too. The food taste and odor...

Keep those masks handy and vaccines up to date: https://www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcoverage/ccc/108524

I agree with my little penguin. You should try to consult with a rheumatologist along with your gastroenterologist. That butterfly rash coupled with raised rheumatoid factor levels is suspicious (but by no means certain) for lupus.

Common requirement yes, but not in all cases. My first and so far only biologic has been Stelara for over 6 years now. My GI thought it was the right drug for my Crohn's and was able to convince the insurance company to cover it from the start. I never had any anti-TNF.

I don't know whether the rise or not of any given inflammation marker is based on a specific inflammatory pathway. I think it might have more to do with the location of the inflammation and the inflammatory signals that are being produced by that inflamed site. And I think it can vary from...

They were evaluating you for back pain and as a follow-up to your Crohn's surgery, right? In which case I would interpret the term "suspicious" to be in reference to a possible recurrence of Crohn's inflammation and a stricture near the point where the two ends of the gut were sewn back together...

So far as I know, treating lesions in the large bowel is not harder than in the small bowel. For either one the key is partnering with the GI to find the right combination of medication, diet, and lifestyle that achieves a solid remission.

Good ol' Remicade has a reputation of the strongest medication for Crohn's in general, including colitis, but it also has the highest rate of eventually losing effectiveness due to formation of antibodies against the drug. If you want something that is more targeted on the large bowel, consider...

https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/22/4847 From the paper: Conclusions Our retrospective study of patients on vedolizumab therapy for both UC and CD found that higher pre-treatment vitamin D levels were associated with higher endoscopic improvement in UC and greater nutritional and...

Yes, I see similar estimates when I look at the website, but when I look at the same plan on the medicare.gov it says that my co-pay for a year's worth of Stelara will be $190,000. So which one is right? Of course I'm hoping that it's the $3K one and not the $190K one. But other sources say...

It sounds like you have achieved partial but not quite full remission. The skyrizi has knocked the disease down a lot, but the capsule camera endoscopy indicates there is still low residual disease. This is much the same situation I am in with Stelara. I've been on it for six years now, and...

Anderson007 is correct. There is no specific treatment for Crohn's ulcers. A Crohn's ulcer is just an area of particularly intense inflammation such that the damage to the tissue constitutes a visually obvious lesion upon colonoscopy. The treatment for Crohn's ulcers is to get the inflammation...

In Crohn's disease the term "remission" could mean different things. Remission as a general term means being free of disease or the disease is so low and quiet that your condition is pretty much the same as having no disease. There are several types or levels of remission in Crohn's disease...