Ulcerative Colitis

Has Ulcerative Colitis caused you or someone you love pain and discomfort? Have you been experiencing continual, uncontrolled waves of digestive problems such as bloody stools, frequent stools, liquid stools, constant urging to stool, cramping and pain? Have you been unsure and even anxious about how to properly treat your Ulcerative Colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease? Have the medications, procedures, and treatment options been disappointing?

We welcome you to Digestive Medical Solutions, where our approach and methods to treating Ulcerative Colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease are both refreshing and revolutionary. At Digestive Medical Solutions, we treat the underlying causes of the inflammation that we believe are the overlooked, key contributing factors to Ulcerative Colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Using our unique method of customized diagnosis and treatment, we personalize each patient's treatment plan and go beyond the traditional spectrum of common medications, steroids, and surgery. Furthermore, we follow a detailed series of important steps that include an integrative medical approach to help our patients reach optimal health.

Steps We Take to Treating Ulcerative Colitis

Step 1: We Gather a Full and Complete Diagnosis

First, we need to locate all of the regions and symptoms of Ulcerative Colitis affecting you. This includes any mucosal membrane changes, historical and current consumption of medications, treatments, dietary habits and other lifestyle factors that may have contributed to your condition.

This first step will help us assess your current level of health pertaining to Ulcerative Colitis. It is important for us to get a clear, detailed, and accurate picture of the ulcerative colitis complex of symptoms that are affecting you because everyone's body is unique and the path to healing will be different for everybody.

Step 2: We Gather a Proper Diagnosis of All the Triggers and Possible Causative Agents:

Although research is inconclusive to a definitive cause of Ulcerative Colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease, we find that a detailed testing profile and comprehensive clinical overview, helps to unveil several causative factors and triggers involved in each person's Ulcerative Colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. The example of the testing below combined with our unique treatment process allows for a cause-focused treatment plan.

• Thorough testing for various infections such as viral, bacterial, Lyme disease, fungal (Candida), and parasitic profiles.
• Testing immunity markers and performing other specialty inflammatory markers.
• Testing for chemical toxic exposures and heavy metal toxic exposures that are often linked to autoimmunity.
• Testing for all nutritional, mineral, and vitamin deficiencies as well as amino acids that contribute to poor health and healing.
• Testing for food allergies, food sensitivities, and emotional stressors that are often hidden triggers.

Step 3: We Provide a Complete and Detailed, Customized Treatment Plan

Using our proprietary, integrative medical approach, each patient is given a unique, detailed, treatment plan that is designed to help you achieve the best results. Each patient is given the tools to reach their optimal health and establish long-term success.

Part I - Full Diagnosis and Location of Intestinal Lesions (ulcers and inflammation)

It is important to identify all the symptoms and then grade each symptom accordingly to monitor improvements. Every patient is different and will have unique symptoms and various levels of inflammation, different triggers, and flare-ups. The gastrointestinal (GI) Mucosa in the colon is irritated in diverse regions and can have various micro-changes that are unique to each person's Ulcerative Colitis, such as different intestinal flora (bacteria).

Some of those bacteria may be good for the body and some can be harmful. The microenvironment around the ulcers can change, particularly during flare-ups. Restoring this milieu and microenvironment is one of the critical components to our success in treatment. In addition, understanding current intestinal immunity and how ulcerative colitis is affecting the entire health of the person is vital.

Here Are a Few Different Presentations of Ulcerative Colitis Within the Colon:

• 44% only in distal rectum location of disease (sigmoid or rectum.)
• 36% full left side up to splenic flexure (left sided Ulcerative Colitis.)
• 20% entire colon inflamed (Extensive Ulcerative Colitis.)

At Digestive Medical Solutions, we review a complete picture of all your past medications, treatments, and dietary and lifestyle changes.

Our Approach is More Involved than Just Prescribing Medications to Treat Inflammation

The general approach being used today by most digestive and colon specialists is to manage the more aggressive presentations of Ulcerative Colitis with long-term steroid usage. This method, though helpful, simply manages symptoms. It never actually addresses the underlying cause for the disease at a deeper level. In essence, it's a symptomatic Band-Aid treatment.

It can become a very complex situation of managing different types of medications with flare-ups. Our approach is very different in that we aim to treat the underlying causes of inflammation and ultimately rebalance the body's immune response.

Common Problems Patients Often Face Before Coming to Digestive Medical Solutions

Unfortunately, relapse in Ulcerative Colitis is common. When patients experience various GI flare-ups, medications can be altered. Statistically, of the people who use steroids, 30% will eventually need colon resection surgery within a year. The long-term use of steroid medications may also damage a person's immune system that brings about infections as well as additional cancer risks, such as Lymphoma.

It is essential to provide an in-depth diagnosis for each patient and treatment plan with the goal of reducing the need for ongoing harmful medications. Our specialized team at Digestive Medical Solutions has developed an important process to deal with the erratic patterns and symptoms by establishing a powerful, customized treatment plan that works to help our patients.

Part II – We Gather Full and Proper Diagnosis of All Triggers and Possible Causative Agents:

It is very important to point out that most autoimmune diseases such as Ulcerative Colitis are referred to as 'idiopathic'; meaning the cause of the illness is currently unknown. While the causes are currently unknown, upon running in-depth diagnostics at our center, we find that patients with Ulcerative Colitis have increased exposure to infectious agents, which largely goes untreated and undiagnosed by the conventional model. The current data seems to reflect and favor what we have found. Infections play an important role in Ulcerative Colitis pathophysiology.

Other factors such as genetic predispositions may bring about and exacerbate Ulcerative Colitis. Infections may be the largest influencer of genetic changes and shifts. More than genetics, epigenetics may best explain this phenomenon. The term "Epigenetic" refers to the environmental factors that actually alter our body's genetics and risks for diseases. In Ulcerative Colitis, the epigenetic factors lead to poor immunity along with a vicious inflammatory cycle.

How Environmental Factors and Triggers are Related to Ulcerative Colitis

Environmental factors such as food allergies, chemical sensitivities, and heavy metal toxicities act as triggers that ignite the inflammatory process. When healthy, the gastrointestinal tract is a very important barrier that allows only certain-sized molecules through for assimilation. It is also responsible for a major portion of our immune system. Once the microenvironment of the bowel is disrupted, larger proteins and molecules can penetrate and cause a cascade of immune reactions that lead to chronic inflammation and further contribute to autoimmunity. For this reason, some foods and exposures can bring about waves of GI flare-ups and eventually make the patient extremely sensitive to lifestyle patterns.

Are You Having Other Symptoms That Seem Unrelated to IBD?

In fact, many of these symptoms, though commonly seen in Ulcerative Colitis, really point to the various infectious diseases and environmental triggers of symptoms that we see in our patients. Ulcerative Colitis can also produce various extra-intestinal symptoms that may include and are not limited to:

• Joint pain.
• Arthritis – Painful inflammation and stiffness of the joints.
• Arthralgia – Painful inflammation and stiffness of the joints.
• Pericarditis – Pericarditis is a condition in which the sac-like covering around the heart (pericardium) becomes inflamed.
• Pyoderma Gangrenosum – Ulcers and tissue becomes necrotic with chronic ulcerative wounds within the colon.
• Erythema Nodosum – Inflammation of the fat cells under the skin with red nodules.
• Ocular Inflammation – A general term for inflammation affecting any part of the eye or surrounding tissue.
• Pericholangitis – Inflammation of the bile ducts.
• Pharyngeal Ulceration – Ulcers in the throat.
• Venous Thrombosis – Increased blood clot formations and risk of clots.

A More In-Depth Diagnosis Leads to a Better Treatment Plan

As we investigate deeper through our testing processes, we notice various factors that we believe may be the causes to Ulcerative Colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

What We Look For:

• Infection tests, complete viral, bacterial, Lyme disease, fungal (candida), parasites and other Infectious profiles.
• Test complete immunity and inflammatory markers.
• Target all Chemical toxic exposures and Heavy Metal toxic exposures that are often linked to autoimmunity.
• Test for all Nutritional decencies; mineral, vitamin and amino acids that contribute to poor health and healing of the person.
• Test all Food Allergies, Food sensitivities and Emotional stressors that act as triggers.

Part III – We Build the Correct Treatment Plan to Work For You

Our highly customized and individualized treatment plans are built from the information gathered throughout our detailed testing process. We then use a targeted, proprietary integrative method to help you reach optimal health. The treatment plans include key factors for each patient to continue for long-term health. If you have any questions about your Ulcerative Colitis and how we may be able to help you, please contact us today.

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Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Are you or someone you love suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome? Are you experiencing abdominal discomfort, cramps, gas, bloating, constipation and/or diarrhea? Do have a clear understanding of what is influencing your IBS? Have you been frustrated with insufficient or ineffective treatments and medication options?

Welcome to Digestive Medical Solutions, where our IBS treatment regimens are refreshing and revolutionary. We start by getting an accurate and complete diagnosis of your specific IBS symptom picture and diagnostic profile in order to establish a detailed and customized treatment plan. Our proprietary treatment methods go above and beyond pharmaceutical medications and standard alternative therapies to help our IBS patients reach optimal digestive health. Irritable Bowel Syndrome must be approached by treating the underlying causes of inflammation, irritation and various triggers that effectively balance digestion, motility, the immune system, and the neuroendocrine system.

At Digestive Medical Solutions, we follow a detailed series of steps beginning with a complete diagnosis, proper testing, and the development of a personalized treatment plan with proper follow-up care to help establish long-term success.

How Digestive Medical Solutions Treats Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Step 1: We Gather a Full and Complete Diagnosis

We locate all of the detailed symptoms and triggers of the Irritable Bowel Syndrome affecting you, including any physical and emotional stressors, hormonal imbalances, nervous system imbalances, amino acid deficiencies, past history with medications, as well as current medications, treatments, dietary habits and other lifestyle factors that may contribute to Irritable Bowel Syndrome. This first step will help us assess your current level of health pertaining to IBS. Because everyone's is unique and the path to healing is different for everybody, it's important for us to get a clear, detailed, and accurate picture of your Irritable Bowel Syndrome and the complex of symptoms that are affecting you.

Step 2: We Get a Proper Diagnosis of All Possible Triggers and Causative Agents

Although research for a definitive cause of IBS is inconclusive, we find that a detailed testing profile and comprehensive clinical examination helps to unveil several causative factors and triggers involved in each person's Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Our testing procedures, outlined below, allows for a truly cause-focused treatment plan, including:

• Thorough testing for various infections including viral and bacterial; Lyme disease; fungal (Candida) and parasitic profiles.
• Testing for hormonal imbalances and neurotransmitter deficiencies to include amino acid imbalances.
• Identify digestive nervous system triggers.
• Testing immunity markers and performing other specialty inflammatory markers.
• Testing for chemical toxic exposures and heavy metal toxic exposures that are often linked to autoimmunity.
• Testing for all nutritional, mineral, and vitamin deficiencies that contribute to poor health and healing.
• Testing for food allergies, food sensitivities, and emotional stressors that are often hidden triggers.
• Emotional stressors.
• Help to establish healing.

Step 3: We Provide a Complete and Detailed, Customized Treatment Plan

Using our proprietary, integrative medical approach, each patient is given a uniquely detailed treatment plan designed to help them achieve the best results. Each patient is given the tools to reach their optimal health and establish long-term success. We have identified the important treatments and goals that help you go beyond symptomatic control and pharmacologic treatments to achieve less flares, less digestive irregularities and ultimately aim to avoid prescriptive medication all together.

Regardless of your current situation, our management and treatment plans can be tailored with an ongoing complex clinical evaluation, and lifestyle enhancements, along with molecular marker monitoring, which is coordinated in our integrative model to help you achieve long-term success.

Part I - Complete Diagnosis of IBS

It is important to identify all symptoms and grade each accordingly, so we can monitor improvements. Every patient is different and will have different symptoms and triggers, varying levels of flare-ups and digestive discomfort. IBS requires a detailed diagnosis that often can be difficult to assemble, unless you review the entire symptomatic picture with the proper clinical experience.

Various micro-changes, such as different intestinal flora (bacteria) can play a role. Some of those bacteria may be good for the body and some may be harmful. The microenvironment around the gastrointestinal (GI) lining and motility can change, particularly during episodes of IBS. Restoring this milieu and microenvironment is one of the critical components to our success in treatment. In addition, understanding current intestinal immunity and how IBS is ultimately affecting the entire health of the person is vital. The digestive tract is tied to the entire health of a person and patients with IBS can have other symptoms physical or emotional since it is tied to their digestion.

Common Treatment Strategies for Patients

• Focusing on symptom control and improvement in quality of life.
• Pharmacologic therapy to include: antidiarrheals, laxatives, probiotics, anticholinergics, antidepressants, antibiotics, and the newly approved drug, Linaclotide.
• Alternative treatment options such as exclusion diets, dietary changes, peppermint oil, exercise, relaxation therapy, or acupuncture.

At Digestive Medical Solutions, we review all your past medications, treatments, dietary and lifestyle changes. Then we go above and beyond these basic approaches to help our patients get well.

Our Approach is More Involved than Just Prescribing Medications

The general approach being used today by most digestive and colon specialists is to manage the more aggressive presentations of IBS with prescription medications. This method, though it may be helpful in the beginning, only manages the symptoms and never actually addresses the underlying causes of the disease. In essence, it is a symptomatic Band-Aid treatment. It can become a very complex situation of managing different types of medications, including antidepressants, as well as other over-the-counter products to deal with flare-ups. Our approach is very different in that we aim to treat the underlying causes and triggers of IBS that impact GI motility and ultimately rebalance the body's enteric neuroendocrine response.

Common Problems Patients Often Face Before Coming to Digestive Medical Solutions

Unfortunately, continual relapses in IBS are common. When patients experience various GI flare-ups, medications can be altered. Statistically, the most common outcome for patients with IBS is GI-motility irregularities that result in cramping, diarrhea and constipation alterations.

There appears to be a large number of patients that never seek medical care altogether and simply use over the counter medication to control symptoms. Overuse of these over the counter agents can have harmful long-term impacts on health. Today's stressful environments, along with the day-to-day pressures of life, play a major role to the onset and flare-ups with IBS. However, long-term psychotropic drug usage is not the answer either.

Our specialized team at Digestive Medical Solutions has developed an important process to deal with the erratic patterns and symptoms by establishing a powerful, customized treatment plan to help our patients find relief.

Part II - Get Full and Proper Diagnosis of All Triggers and Possible Causative Agents

It is very important to point out the cause of Irritable Bowel Syndrome is currently unknown. Some possible causes include genetic mutations, abnormal GI motility, enhanced gut pain sensation (visceral hypersensitivity), bacterial flora and inflammatory cell alteration, or psychological changes. Primarily, a combination of these factors leads to IBS. We have also identified increased exposure to infectious agents and release of neurotoxins, which goes largely untreated and undiagnosed by the conventional model. These various patterns all play a role to the pathophysiology of IBS.

Other factors such as genetic predispositions may bring about abnormal GI motility and enhanced gut pain sensation (visceral hypersensitivity). Infections may be the largest influencer of genetic changes and shifts. More than just genetics, epigenetics may best explain this phenomenon. The term "epigenetic" refers to the environmental factors that actually alter our body's genetics and risks for diseases. In IBS, the epigenetic factors lead to a vicious inflammatory cycle and poor immunity. Psychological changes can be brought on by life situations as well as infections that impact neurotransmitter activities in the brain and nervous system. We must remember that GI tract motility is influenced by nerve tissue excitement in the gastrointestinal tract.

How Environmental Factors and Triggers Are Related to IBS

Environmental factors such as food allergies, chemical sensitivities, and heavy metal toxicities act as triggers that ignite the inflammatory process. The gastrointestinal tract, when healthy, is a very important barrier that allows only certain sized molecules through for assimilation. It is also responsible for a major portion of our immune system.

Once the microenvironment of the bowel is disrupted, larger proteins and molecules can penetrate and cause a cascade of immune and nerve reactions. These lead to chronic inflammation and GI motility changes which further contribute to IBS. For this reason, some foods and exposures can bring about waves of GI flare-ups and eventually make the patient extremely sensitive to lifestyle patterns, including stressful emotional events. Numerous structures in the Central Nervous System connect to the GI tract through serotonergic nerves that help regulate GI motility, sensation, and secretion.

In patients with IBS, an imbalance in the function of serotonin leads to the deregulation of intestinal motility. Based on this serotonin imbalance, various treatment approaches are used to bring about relief.

Are You Having Other Symptoms That Seem Related to IBS?

Many of the symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome actually correlate with infectious diseases and environmental factors when observed by an experienced integrative clinical eye. Patients may present with:

• Cramps or lower abdominal pain.
• Altered bowel habits in volume, frequency, and consistency.
• Abdominal bloating and flatulence.
• Gastroesophageal reflux (heartburn.)
• Dysphagia (difficulty swallowing.)
• Dyspepsia (impaired digestion.)
• Nausea.
• Impaired sexual function.
• Dysmenorrhea (extreme menstrual pain.)
• Increase in frequency and urgency to urinate.

Other symptoms may suggest autoimmune involvement seen in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

• Joint pain or arthritis – Painful inflammation and stiffness of the joints.
• Arthralgia – Painful inflammation and stiffness of the joints.
• Pericarditis – Pericarditis is a condition in which the sac-like covering around the heart (pericardium) becomes inflamed.
• Pyoderma Gangrenosum – Ulcers and tissue becomes necrotic with chronic ulcerative wounds within the colon.
• Erythema Nodosum – Inflammation of the fat cells under the skin with red nodules.
• Ocular Inflammation – A general term for inflammation affecting any part of the eye or surrounding tissue.
• Pericholangitis – Inflammation of the bile ducts.
• Pharyngeal Ulceration – Ulcers in the throat.
• Venous Thrombosis – Increased blood clot formations and risk of clots.

A More In-Depth Diagnosis Leads to a Better Treatment Plan

As we investigate deeper throughout the testing processes, we notice various factors that we believe may be the cause to Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

What We Look For:

• Infections testing, complete viral, bacterial, Lyme disease, fungal (Candida) and parasites and other infectious profiles.
• Test complete immunity and inflammatory markers
• Target all chemical toxic exposures and heavy metal toxic exposures that are often linked to autoimmunity.
• Test for all nutritional deficiencies; mineral, vitamin and amino acids that contribute to poor health and healing of patient.
• Test all food allergies, food sensitivities and emotional stressors that act as triggers.

Part III - Put the Correct Treatment Plan to Work for You

Our highly individualized treatment plans are systemically built from the information gathered from the testing process. We then use targeted, proprietary integrative methods to help you reach your optimal health. We have identified important treatments to help you go beyond symptomatic control and reliance on medications and steroids and ultimately achieve fewer flare-ups and more IBS freedom. If you have any questions about your IBS disease and how we may be able to help you, please contact us today. And remember, education is the best prescription.

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Crohn's Disease

Is Crohn's disease giving you or someone you love pain and discomfort? Are you currently suffering with diarrhea, fevers, unintentional weight loss, perianal fistulas, abscesses, rectal bleeding, frequent and urgent bowel movements, abdominal pain, and sensation of incomplete evacuation, constipation, or bowel obstructions? Have you been uncertain and even concerned about your long-term treatment options for Crohn's and Inflammatory Bowel Disease? Have the medications and procedures, and treatment options provided little to no relief?

We want to welcome you to Digestive Medical Solutions, where our approach and methods to treating Crohn's disease and Inflammatory Bowel Disease are refreshing and revolutionary and we give our patients the much-needed options to help attain a new level of health.

At Digestive Medical Solutions, we treat the underlying causes that are immediately associated with your Inflammatory Bowel Disease and are typically ignored by other physicians. We provide much more to your treatment plan than just the common prescriptive medication management and surgical options. Every patient has unique causative factors that are directly linked to their Crohn's disease, flare-ups and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. At Digestive Medical Solutions, we use a proprietary integrative medical approach to help our patients with Crohn's disease reach the best treatment plan for long-term health.

We go far beyond the common treatments of medications, steroids and surgery, which may only provide temporary relief, to get to the underlying causes. Much emphasis is placed on determining important predictive factors to the progression and causes to your Crohn's disease. We use a complex evaluation of key factors that include clinical and endoscopic presentation, fecal, serological and routine laboratory tests, and genetic research. Furthermore, we go much deeper with our integrative approach to help you to build a customized treatment plan.

The Important Steps We Take to Treating Crohn's Disease

Step 1: We Gather a Complete Diagnosis.

The distinct patterns of inflammation in the digestive tract are thoroughly reviewed by our staff. In addition to all the individualized symptoms of Crohn's disease affecting you, which includes any mucosal membrane changes, we also review past medical history with medications as well as existing medications, treatments, dietary habits and other lifestyle factors that may be contributing to your Crohn's disease. The majority of patients with Crohn's disease will unfortunately have developed at least one stricturing or perforating complication requiring surgery.

It is important for us to identify our patient's total risk for disease progression. This important first step will help us assess the present level of your Crohn's disease presentation. It's important to get a clear, detailed, and accurate picture of your individual Crohn's disease complex of inflammatory bowel symptoms. It is important to note that everyone's condition is unique and the path to healing will be different for everybody.

Step 2: We Gather a Proper Diagnosis of All the Triggers and Possible Causative Agents:

Although research is inconclusive to a definitive cause of Crohn's disease and Inflammatory Bowel Disease, we find that a detailed testing profile and comprehensive clinical overview helps to unveil several causative factors and triggers involved in each person's Crohn's disease and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. The example of the testing process below, combined with our unique treatment process, allows for a cause-focused treatment plan. This approach is what truly separates us from other centers, including:

• Thorough testing for various infections such as viral, bacterial, Lyme disease, fungal (Candida), and parasitic profiles.
• Testing immunity markers and performing other specialty inflammatory markers.
• Testing for chemical toxic exposures and heavy metal toxic exposures often linked to autoimmunity.
• Testing for all nutritional, mineral, and vitamin deficiencies as well as amino acids that contribute to poor health and healing.
• Testing for food allergies, food sensitivities, and emotional stressors that are often hidden triggers.

Step 3: We Provide a Complete and Detailed, Customized Treatment Plan

Each patient is given a unique, detailed, treatment plan that is designed to achieve the best results using our proprietary, integrative medical approach. Each patient is given the tools to reach their optimal health and establish long-term success. We have identified the treatments that can help you go beyond symptomatic control and help you achieve less flare-ups, less hospitalizations, and more importantly, help you avoid surgery unless absolutely necessary.

No matter your current situation, our management and treatment plans can be tailored to provide you with an ongoing complex clinical evaluation, and lifestyle enhancements, along with endoscopic and molecular marker monitoring, which are coordinated in our integrative model to help you achieve long-term success.

Part I - Full Diagnosis and Location of Intestinal Lesions (inflammation along the lining)

It is important to identify all the symptoms and grade each symptom accordingly so that we can monitor improvements. Every patient is different and will have different symptoms and varying levels of inflammation, different triggers, and flare-ups. The GI Mucosa in the colon is irritated in diverse regions and can have various micro-changes that are unique to each person's Crohn's disease, such as different intestinal flora (bacteria). Some of those bacteria may be good for the body and some can be harmful.

The microenvironment around the GI lining can change, particularly during progression of disease. Restoring this milieu and microenvironment is one of the critical components to our success in treatment. In addition, it is vital to understand the current intestinal immunity and how Crohn's disease is ultimately affecting the entire health of the patient.

Significant Predictive Changes in Crohn's Disease Progression:

• Small bowel involvement opposed to simply colonic disease.
• Perianal disease and changes.
• Increased need for medication management (particularly steroids).
• Bowel Obstructions.

At Digestive Medical Solutions we review all your past medications, treatments, and dietary and lifestyle changes. Our approach is more Involved than just prescribing medications or surgical resections to treat Inflammation.

The general approach being used today by most digestive and colon specialists is to manage the more aggressive presentations of Crohn's disease with long-term steroid usage and surgery. This method, though helpful, simply manages symptoms. It never actually addresses the underlying cause for the disease at a deeper level. In essence, it's a symptomatic Band-Aid treatment. It can become a very complex situation of managing different types of medications and flare-ups. Our approach is very different in that we aim to treat the underlying causes of inflammation and ultimately rebalance the body's immune response.

Common Problems Patients Often Face Before Coming to Digestive Medical Solutions

Unfortunately, relapse in Crohn's disease is common. When patients experience various GI flare-ups, medications can be altered. Furthermore, long-term use of steroid medications may also damage a person's immune system and increase the risk for infections as well as additional cancer risks, such as Lymphoma. It is essential to provide an in-depth diagnosis for each patient and treatment plan with the goal of reducing the need for ongoing harmful medications and surgery. Our specialized team at Digestive Medical Solutions has developed an important process to deal with the erratic patterns and symptoms by establishing a powerful, customized treatment plan that works to help our patients.

Part II – We Gather Full and Proper Diagnosis of All Triggers and Possible Causative Agents

It is very important to point out that most autoimmune diseases such as Crohn's disease are referred to as 'idiopathic' diseases, meaning the cause of the illness is currently unknown. While the causes are currently deemed unknown, upon running in-depth diagnostics at our center, we find that patients have increased exposure to infectious agents, which largely goes untreated and undiagnosed by the conventional model. The current data seems to reflect and favor what we have found. Infections play an important role in Crohn's disease and Inflammatory Bowel Disease pathophysiology.

Other factors such as genetic predispositions may bring about and exacerbate Crohn's disease. Infections may be the largest influencer of genetic changes and shifts. More than genetics, epigenetics may best explain this phenomenon. The term "Epigenetic" refers to the environmental factors that actually alter our body's genetics and risks for diseases. In Crohn's disease, the epigenetic factors lead to poor immunity along with a vicious inflammatory cycle.

How Environmental Factors and Triggers are Related to Crohn's Disease

Environmental factors such as food allergies, chemical sensitivities, and heavy metal toxicities act as triggers that ignite the inflammatory process. When healthy, the gastrointestinal tract is a very important barrier that allows only certain sized molecules through for assimilation. It is also responsible for a major portion of our immune system.

Once the microenvironment of the bowel is disrupted, larger proteins and molecules can penetrate and cause a cascade of immune reactions that lead to chronic inflammation and further contribute to autoimmunity. For this reason some foods and exposures can bring about waves of GI flare-ups and eventually make the patient extremely sensitive to lifestyle patterns.

Are You Having Other Symptoms That Seem Unrelated to IBD?

In fact, many of these symptoms, though commonly seen in other Inflammatory Bowel Disease, really point to the various infectious diseases and environmental triggers of symptoms that we see in our patients.

Crohn's disease can also produce various extraintestinal symptoms that may include other organ systems such as bones and joints, skin, eyes, hepatobiliary system (liver), lungs, and kidneys. Collectively, these are called extraintestinal manifestations of IBD, and they can occur prior to, in conjunction with, active Inflammatory Bowel Disease. It is not uncommon for an autoimmune disease to give multiple system presentations. This information provides pointers that lead to causative factors:

• Joint pain.
• Joint pain.
• Arthralgia – Painful inflammation and stiffness of the joints.
• Pericarditis – Pericarditis is a condition in which the sac-like covering around the heart (pericardium) becomes inflamed.
• Pyoderma Gangrenosum – Ulcers and tissue becomes necrotic with chronic ulcerative wounds within the colon.
• Erythema Nodosum – Inflammation of the fat cells under the skin with red nodules.
• Ocular Inflammation – A general term for inflammation affecting any part of the eye or surrounding tissue.
• Pericholangitis – Inflammation of the bile ducts.
• Pharyngeal Ulceration – Ulcers in the throat.
• Venous Thrombosis – Increased blood clot formations and risk of clots.

A More In-Depth Diagnosis Leads to a Better Treatment Plan

As we investigate deeper through our testing processes, we notice various factors that we believe may be the causes to Crohn's disease and Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

What We Look For:

• Infections, testing complete viral, bacterial, Lyme disease, fungal (candida) and parasites and other infectious profiles.
• Test complete immunity and inflammatory markers.
• Target all chemical toxic exposures and heavy metal toxic exposures that are often linked to autoimmunity.
• Test for all nutritional deficiencies: mineral, vitamin and amino acids that contribute to poor health and healing of the patient.
• Test all food allergies, food sensitivities and emotional stressors that act as triggers.

Part III - Put the Correct Treatment Plan to Work for You

Our highly customized and individualized treatment plans are built from the information gathered from the testing process. We then utilize a targeted, proprietary and integrative method to help you reach your optimal health. If you have any questions about your Crohn's disease and how we may be able to help you, please contact us today.

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