Ulcerative Colitis

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Causes of ulcerative colitis

Symptoms usually develop over time, rather than suddenly. Ulcerative colitis can be debilitating and can sometimes lead to life-threatening complications.

A major concern for patients with ulcerative colitis is internal scarring (adhesions) that forms as a response to the inflammation. Because the body can not dissolve adhesions, these internal scars tend to remain in the digestive tract for life. Adhesions in the intestine can slow digestion, back up food, and cause a host of digestive issues.

Wherever they form, adhesions can blanket the intestinal walls, prevent food from being absorbed, create pain, or cause digestive problems. Adhesions within the wall of the bowel can squeeze the intestines into narrow spaces called strictures. Adhesions can join loops of the bowel together or glue them to other organs. Any of these situations can lead to surgery. Unfortunately, surgical repair of the problem is recognized as the primary cause of bowel obstruction, a life-threatening condition that can occur because surgical repair tends to cause more adhesions to form.

Symptoms of ulcerative colitis

  • Abdominal pain and cramping
  • Diarrhea
  • Rectal bleeding
  • Urgency to have a bowel movement
  • Fatigue
  • Weight loss and loss of appetite
  • Fever
  • Joint pain, skin rashes, or eye inflammation in some cases

Important Notes

Symptoms usually wax and wane, with periods of remission and flare-ups.

Severe ulcerative colitis can lead to complications such as toxic megacolon, severe bleeding, or increased risk of colon cancer, so prompt medical care is essential.

Treatment for ulcerative colitis

The first line of defense in managing UC is diet and medication. As the disease progresses, immunotherapy may be introduced.

Ulcerative Colitis and its inherent inflammatory nature must be managed by a physician or medical professional. Clear Passage® can treat the adhesions caused by the inflammatory process or surgery.

Clear Passage® has vast experience treating and decreasing internal adhesions non-surgically. This non-invasive therapy has been the focus of our work since 1989, when our physical therapist founder developed debilitating abdominal and pelvic adhesions after surgery and radiation therapy. Citations on our work decreasing internal adhesions have been published in numerous respected medical journals. and are contained in the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

Our focus is to decrease internal adhesions manually – without surgery. We use our hands to pull apart the glue-like straitjackets of adhesions, like pulling out the run in a three-dimensional sweater. Studies indicate that attending our therapy can improve the uptake of nutrients and return the body to a prior state of improved mobility and function. As strong glue-like bonds of intestinal adhesions are released, pain and digestive problems are often greatly relieved, so our patients can return to a much higher quality of life.

If you have ulcerative colitis, we will first want to examine your medical records. Experience shows that we should delay therapy if you are in an active flare-up, which will be indicated by certain markers in your blood. We may ask you to undergo and send the results of a recent blood test, so we can be sure that the timing of Clear Passage® Therapy is optimum for you.

During your therapy, we will work to decrease and eliminate adhesions throughout your bowel, abdomen, and pelvis. We will also instruct you about adhesions and show you ways to avoid them and their effects. We will teach you self-treatments and provide you with a home maintenance program to help you maintain the gains we have given you during your therapy sessions, so you can stay in good health and avoid future surgeries.

Other Treatment Options (Surgery, Drugs)

Other treatment options for Ulcerative Colitis include surgery. While effective in the short term, surgery is frequently cited as the primary cause of bowel obstructions. No matter how skilled your surgeon, surgery has been shown to frequently cause the formation of additional adhesions. Thus, surgery can be the direct cause of additional pain, discomfort, and future life-threatening bowel obstruction.

Condition Specific Disclaimer:

Clear Passage® Therapy is a non-surgical, manual physical therapy designed to address adhesions and restricted soft tissue mobility. Published studies and clinical results show that this therapy can reduce adhesions and improve tissue mobility in the bowel. Clinically, we have seen it help patients with strictures or adhesions due to ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, small bowel obstruction, SIBO, and post-surgical scarring.

While our work has been shown to be effective in decreasing adhesions in the bowel, abdomen, and pelvis, we are not physicians. The information we provide here can be valuable, but it is not designed to replace consultation with your doctor.

If you experience severe or urgent symptoms such as persistent abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, vomiting, fever, or suspected bowel obstruction, seek immediate medical attention.

Testimonials:

To read Clear Passage® Therapy patient success stories, please visit our Testimonials page.

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