Pharmacologic treatment for inflammatory bowel disease

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a rare condition characterized by chronic or relapsing immune activation and inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis are the major forms of IBD. Although their etiology is not clear, these conditions are increasingly recognized in Korea. There is no curative treatment for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. The primary goals of current therapy are to induce and maintain remission, which is closely associated with a patient's quality of life. Various drugs are used for diverse clinical presentations of IBD. International and Korean guidelines for the management of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis have been developed and published. This review describes pharmacologic treatment for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis primarily based on the recently published guidelines.