Inflammatory Bowel Disease Program

About the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Program

The Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Program at Jefferson brings together the expertise of specialists in gastroenterology, colorectal surgery, genetics, nutritional care, pathology, radiology and other disciplines to diagnose and treat your IBD, including Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and collagenous colitis.

Since the Program was established in 1996, Jefferson has seen a steady increase in the number of patients with IBD. Patients with complex IBD are often referred to us after their condition has resisted standard treatment elsewhere.

Diagnostic Tests and Individualized Therapies

Through the Program, our physicians provide the latest diagnostic technologies for IBD, including laboratory tests, endoscopic procedures and imaging studies. In addition to the more standard diagnostic tests such as colonoscopy and histology, as well as small bowel studies, CT and MRIs, we have available CT and MRI enterography and capsule endoscopy and enteroscopy to help diagnose IBD, monitor response to therapy and evaluate for disease complications.

Therapy is individualized and based on several factors:

• Subtype/anatomical location and extent of disease
• Severity of inflammation
• Response and/or reaction to previous treatments

While significant advances in medical therapy have been achieved in the last decade, some patients with refractory disease or complications of IBD will, unfortunately, still require surgery. We work closely with our surgical colleagues who have vast experience in this area. A laparoscopic approach is taken whenever appropriate.

Researching New Therapies for IBD

The Program's clinical research focuses on new therapies of IBD, such as new biologic agents designed to reduce or eliminate inflammatory reactions in IBD.