In spite of significant scientific progress in recent years, the aetiopathogenesis of chronic inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) remains elusive. With a prevalence of 1:700 to 1:500 in central Europe, both diseases are not rare. However, most physicians will generally treat only a few patients with IBD in their clinical practice. Because of this limited experience and the variety of clinical IBD manifestations, IBD patients are frequently treated in specialized tertiary care centres. Nevertheless, IBD patients will also consult less specialized general practitioners, who will not be able to focus extensively on the management of IBD patients due to time constraints.
Physicians who take care of IBD patients have to select among an ever-increasing amount of new scientific information in order to provide optimal and up-to-date care to their patients. In the era of evidence-based medicine it is often under debate whether evidence-based medicine may really improve the management of IBD patients or whether the diversity and complexity of IBD needs an individual and patient-oriented approach.
This book, the proceedings of the Falk Symposium 134 on `Trends and Controversies in IBD - Evidence-Based Approach or Individual Management', held in Berlin, Germany, on 12-13 June 2003, critically discusses established and emerging new concepts in the field of IBD. It critically analyzes evidence-based and individual approaches in the management of IBD and discusses these approaches with the help of selected case reports.

Inhalt

From the Table of Contents

List of principal contributors

Preface

Section I: Novel aspects in the Aetiopathogenesis of IBD: Relevance for diagnosis and therapy.- Section II: Classfication and natural history of disease.- Section III: Standards and controversies in the therapy of Crohn's disease.- Section IV: Standards and controversies in the management of ulcerative colitis.-.Section V: Standards and controversies in the surgical management of IBD.- Section VI: Therapy of special problems.-

Index.