Crohn’s Disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory process mainly of the intestinal tract. Although it can affect any part of the digestive tract from the mouth to the anus, it most commonly affects the lower portion of the small intestine (ileum) or the large intestine (colon and rectum). CD is a chronic condition and can recur several times during one’s life. Some people have prolonged periods of remission, sometimes for years, when they have no symptoms. There is no way to predict when a relapse may occur and/or when the symptoms will appear.
Because CD can affect any part of the intestine, the symptoms can be very different from one patient to another. Common symptoms include cramping, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, fever, weight loss and swelling. Not all patients have all these symptoms, and some of them have none.
