Origins and Directions of Inflammatory Bowel Disease : Early Studies of the “Nonspecific” Inflammatory Bowel Diseases

Few human illnesses today are so challenging, medically, scientifically, and socio-economically, as the "nonspecific" inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD): ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Originating several centuries ago but essentially diseases of the 20th century, often attacking children and young adults, involving all bodily systems as well as the gastrointestinal tract, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease have emerged in recent decades as among the more "glamorous" unsolved diseases, presenting unusual opportunities for insightful clinical and investigative study. Many of the prevailing concepts originated during the early and mid 20th century. The purpose of __Origins and Directions of Inflammatory Bowel____Disease__ is to review these earlier studies and their evolution "from the mystical to the molecular," and guide investigators and physicians through the challenging clinical and scientific maze of IBD. Few human illnesses today are so challenging, medically, scientifically, and socio-economically, as the "nonspecific" inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD): ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Originating several centuries ago but essentially diseases of the 20th century, often attacking children and young adults, involving all bodily systems as well as the gastrointestinal tract, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease have emerged in recent decades as among the more "glamorous" unsolved diseases, presenting unusual opportunities for insightful clinical and investigative study. Many of the prevailing concepts originated during the early and mid 20th century. The purpose of Origins and Directions of Inflammatory Bowel Disease is to review these earlier studies and their evolution "from the mystical to the molecular," and guide investigators and physicians through the challenging clinical and scientific maze of IBD. Front Matter....Pages i-ix Introduction....Pages 1-11 Ulcerative Colitis....Pages 13-54 Crohn’s disease....Pages 55-101 Etiology and Pathogenesis of IBD — Origins and Directions....Pages 103-204 The Early Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease....Pages 207-225 Pharmacological Development of Aminosalicylates for the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease....Pages 227-234 Back Matter....Pages 237-246 Disease emerges as a "deviation from normal," with symptoms and signs observed initially in isolated instances, then in groups of patients, reappearing in larger series in increasingly identifiable clinical patterns.1