How to Use Drug Therapies to Manage Irritable Bowel Disease

Irritable Bowel Disease is characterized by bloating or a full sensation after eating. Other symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, constipation and diarrhea, or alternating bouts of all of these. However, many people afflicted with Irritable Bowel Disease are at a loss as to how to manage their condition. Fortunately, there are a number of useful drug therapies designed to help manage Irritable Bowel Disease.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• List of symptoms

Learn How to Use Drug Therapies to Manage Irritable Bowel Disease

1. Be aware that while the use of Alosetron hydrochloride (Lotronex) to manage Irritable Bowel Disease is effective, this drug is currently restricted by the US Food and Drug Administration in that it may only be prescribed to patients with chronic diarrhea that haven't responded to other therapies. The reason for this is because use of this drug may aggressively restrict blood flow to the colon and lead to severe constipation and other complications.

2. Talk to your doctor about the use of the drug Tegaserod maleate (Zelnorm) if your primary symptom is constipation. This drug is intended for short-term therapy, from anywhere from four weeks to six months.

3. Discuss some of the new drug therapies to come along with your doctor, such as lubiprostone (Amitiza). This drug is also used to treat chronic constiptation, as well as bloating and abdominal pain. Lubiprostone was approved as a drug therapy for Irritable Bowel Disease in January of 2006, with a secondary application as a new drug therapy pending in July 2007.

4. Know that there are less aggressive drug therapies available that have demonstrated efficacy in managing symptoms, such as enteric-coated peppermint oil supplements. The active constituent, menthol, has been given to patients for more than 20 years to relax the intestinal muscles and reduce bowel spasms.

Tips & Warnings

• Irritable Bowel Disease is also known as Irritable Bowel Syndrome (or IBS) and Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
• In addition to drug therapies, eat a balanced diet and avoid or restrict your consumption of processed foods, caffeine and alcohol to help manage your symptoms.
• Follow all instructions given by your physician regarding the use of drug therapies to manage your symptoms very carefully and report any adverse side effects right away.
• Fever, weight loss, bleeding and other severe symptoms may indicate a more serious condition than Irritable Bowel Disease, such as cancer or Celiac Disease. Report these symptoms to your doctor without delay.

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