American Idol fan favorites David Archuleta & Casey Abrams raising awareness of Crohn’s Disease & Ulcerative Colitis in recent videos.
David Archuleta was a fan favorite & the runner-up to the seventh season of American Idol. He’s spent his time since American Idol traveling around the country & the world performing on tours & for different events. He recently updated his Youtube channel to discuss what he’s currently been up to. One of the topics he discusses in the video is the recent diagnosis of his older sister’s Crohn’s Disease. He thanked many of the fans who wrote to him regarding the condition as well as the CCFA. It sounds as though his sister is doing better, but as those dealing with Crohn’s Disease know, there is no easy fix & David states he is still trying to learn more about the disease & how he can best help his sister. Continue reading “David Archuleta & Casey Abrams Talk Crohn’s & Ulcerative Colitis” »
The American Idol “Top 6” finalist, Casey Abrams, looks to highlight inspiring stories of those who have pushed beyond the limitations Inflammatory Bowel Disease imposes on their life.
Casey Abrams’ battle with Ulcerative Colitis came to light earlier this spring while competing on American Idol. Despite trying to put on a strong face & not bring attention to himself due to his illness, he eventually became so ill that he had to be hospitalized & receive blood transfusions. Since the news of his health problems became known, he has received an outpouring of support from his fans & those who have Inflammatory Bowel Diseases like Crohn’s Disease & Ulcerative Colitis. Mr. Abrams recently spoke with FOX’s Beth Galvin about the struggles he faced during American Idol & beyond. Continue reading “Singer Casey Abrams Raising Awareness With IBD Icons Project” »
BioLineRx announced that it has licensed an experimental immunotherapy drug from Yissum Research Development Company Ltd which is the business side of Hebrew University of Jerusalem(Israel).
The drug is currently known as “BL-7040” & BioLineRx has plans to further develop & commercialize the drug worldwide. BL-7040 is an experimental drug that is still in testing, but it has already passed Phase Ib & Phase IIa clinical trials. Officially it won’t be known how well BL-7040 works until it’s subjected to Phase IIb clinical trials. However, Prof. Hermona Soreq sounds optimistic on the drug’s efficacy:
The efficacy of BL-7040 in these [earlier] studies was shown to be highly significant and comparable to that of dexamethasone, a steroid used routinely for IBD that has multiple side effects. Continue reading “BioLineRX’s TLR-9 Immunotherapy For Inflammatory Bowel Disease” »
Inflammatory Bowel Diseases can affect not just your family members, but also your family pet.
Mississippi State University is reporting that, “TaTonka Gold”, their living dog mascot had to be euthanized due to a number of health problems, one of which was Inflammatory Bowel Disease. This reminded me of an article I saw a few weeks back: “Treating inflammatory bowel disease in dogs” from the Washington Post’s website. That article involved a pet owner writing in about their dog’s digestive problems, the answer they received back was too look into the possibility that their dog has IBD. Continue reading “Inflammatory Bowel Disease Can Affect Cats & Dogs” »
Those who develop Clostridium difficile along with their Inflammatory Bowel Disease may have a harder time treating it with Vancomycin.
A review study of 101 patients who had an Inflammatory Bowel Disease of one kind or another found that Clostridium difficile was more likely to occur in those treated with the antibiotic vancomycin compared to those treated with another antibiotic, metronidazole or a combination of both. Vancomycin goes by the brand name Vancocin while metronidazole is also known as Flagyl.
The review study showed a recurrence rate of almost 40%(39.4%) in those who took vancomycin compared to 14.5% in those who took metronidazole & 13.3% in those who took a combination of both. No obvious differences were found between patients & the vast majority(89%) were on immunosupressive drugs of some sort. Steroid use does seem to play a role as reinfection rates were approximately twice as high, 32% vs 15.7%, for those receiving a steroidal treatment. Continue reading “Clostridium difficile Recurrence Higher For IBD Patients Treated With Vancomycin” »
Research led by Fang Yang at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center has uncovered some interesting information which could lead to new treatments for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases like Crohn’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis.
The researchers focused in on proteins that are secreted by the Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG bacteria. This bacteria is commonly found in yogurts. The proteins they isolated were given generic names such as p75 & p40. Researchers narrowed their focus to protein ‘p40’. P40 was found to activate the epidermal growth factor receptor which is responsible for sustaining living cells & growing new ones. Activation of this receptor appears to have helped prevent both cell death & inflammation caused by weakening of the intestinal tracts “tight junctions” which prevent microbes & toxins escaping into the bloodstream. Continue reading “Yogurt Protein Could Be Helpful For Inflammatory Bowel Diseases” »
A recent study suggests kids & teens may not be properly taking medication prescribed to them for Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
Continue reading “Kids With IBD: Medication, CCFA Webcast & Alternatives” »
A recent study looking at the the cytokine(signaling protein) IL-23(Interleukin 23), from Tongji University in Shanghai, China has found that those with Crohn’s Disease have higher levels of the IL-23 signaling protein in the inflamed mucosa lining of their bowel. Continue reading “Study Shows Overactive Inflammatory Response For Those With Crohn’s Disease” »
Review: DigestActiv Digestive Enzymes From Source Naturals
Digestive enzymes are an essential part of the digestive process. They are one of the three main things(enzymes,acid & muscle contractions) your stomach uses to breakdown foods into things like sugars and peptides which your small intestine can then absorb. Some are born with digestive enzymes up the wazoo while others may be deficient or as they age become deficient. Signs of enzyme deficiency are rather generic and may mimic many others issues. Usually the symptoms are bloating, belching, heartburn, nausea or indigestion. Digestive enzymes are used mainly in the stomach & don’t normally affect the intestinal tract, however upper digestive issues can manifest new or worsen existing problems in the intestinal tract. Continue reading “Review: DigestActiv Digestive Enzymes From Source Naturals” »
Inflammatory Bowel Disease is an autoimmune disease that causes chronic inflammation of the bowel. Usually Inflammatory Bowel Disease shows up as either Ulcerative Colitis or the potentially more serious Crohn’s Disease(neither is a cakewalk though). A new study by Northwestern University took a common probiotic(L. Acidophilus) & genetically modified it so that it lacked the gene “phosphoglycerol esterase” which normally causes inflammation in the gut. The probiotic was given to mice who had two different types of colitis. After a 13-day treatment the mice were almost completely free of inflammation and their disease was halted by up to 95%. The modified probiotic apparently works by acting as a calming agent on the autoimmune system so that it stops attacking the gut. Continue reading “Genetically Altered Probiotic May Help Inflammatory Bowel Disease” »