As of: March 21, 2024, 8:00 a.m
By: Anna Katharina Kuesters
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Researchers have discovered that certain blood values change long before the onset of Crohn's disease.
Crohn's disease belongs to the group of chronic intestinal diseases (IBD).
Along with ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease is the most well-known of these diseases and can occur from childhood to adulthood.
It is not curable.
According to the
Ludwig Maximilian University Hospital in Munich,
the inflammation in ulcerative colitis is only limited to the large intestine; in Crohn's disease, the entire digestive tract from the mouth to the intestine is often affected.
Causes and symptoms of Crohn's disease
Abdominal pain is a symptom of Crohn's disease.
© Iordache Magdalena/Imago
Crohn's disease causes inflammation of the intestinal lining, with the immune system being responsible for the inflammation.
According to estimates, 100 to 200 people per 100,000 people in Germany currently suffer from this disease.
The exact causes of Crohn's disease are not yet known, but experts suspect a mixture of the following components:
genetic predisposition
Environmental influences
Autoimmune diseases
The clinical picture itself can also look very different.
For example, the inflammation in the digestive tract can lead to cramping abdominal pain, fever, fatigue, bloody and mucous diarrhea or weight loss.
According to the
Federal Ministry of Health,
inflammation of the eyes, joints and skin is possible.
Long road to diagnosis
The faster the intestinal diseases are diagnosed and treated, the higher the likelihood of a milder course.
However, the path to a clear diagnosis is usually quite long.
If Crohn's disease is suspected, doctors must first rule out food intolerances, allergies and medication influences.
A blood test then shows whether the inflammation levels in the body are increased.
If this is the case, the affected person still has to go for a colon and gastroscopy and sometimes have an ultrasound examination carried out.
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Hope for future sufferers
Researchers from England and Denmark have now made a discovery that could provide initial evidence of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis so early that treatment would be possible long before the first symptoms appear.
According to the Francis Crick Institute
, scientists have
been able to demonstrate that the first changes in people's blood values are visible eight years before the onset of Crohn's disease and three years before the onset of ulcerative colitis.
To do this, the researchers used health data from 20,000 people with IBD and compared it with data from 4.6 million people without IBD.
The experts took a closer look at the health data of the sick people ten years before the onset of the IBD diseases.
Over time, certain values in the blood changed, for example those of cells in the blood, minerals and inflammatory markers.
The changes would probably not have been noticed in normal blood tests because they were all within the normal range - only with the help of the large data set were the researchers able to show that the changing values in certain places should be a reason to sit up and take notice.
It is not yet clear whether recognizing the first signs and making radical lifestyle changes, such as a change in diet, could even prevent the disease from breaking out.
However, earlier treatment would be possible with the findings of the study.
This article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication. It in no way replaces a visit to the doctor. Our editorial team is not allowed to answer individual questions about medical conditions.