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Colon removal and other immune diseases

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Posted 6/13/2015 5:24 PM (GMT 0)
Hi I am new here, have had UC for past 5 yrs., plus over past year have had bouts of other immune related diseases: Uveitis and Polymylagiarheumatica (PMR) , plus have had allergies and asthma my whole life. My colitis has been problematic over the past year, hospitalized May 2014, very sick May/June this year, but have stayed out of the hospital.

My question is if I have my colon removed, will it help my other immune issues calm down as well??

Thanks for your thoughts.
Posted 6/13/2015 5:27 PM (GMT 0)
PS: I was off Humira for 3 months, have been back on since 4/15. PMR occurred January 2015, have been on Prednisone since then, down to 17.5 mg at present. Now have Uveitis- very painful left eye with extremely red eye. On drops. All hell broke lose in the Spring when my seasonal allergies got really bad.
Posted 6/13/2015 6:13 PM (GMT 0)
I'm no doctor, but I don't think that having your colon removed will have any effect on your other auto immune disorders. Removing your colon doesn't even cure UC, it just gets rid of the parts that are effected the worst by UC. It is very common for people with auto immune disorders to have more than one...they seem to like traveling in packs. One of my auto immune related issues didn't even start until over a year after I had my colon removed. Good luck with everything!
Posted 6/14/2015 7:15 PM (GMT 0)
My opinion is also no, I've had my J-pouch over a year now and honestly I might be inclined to say that they could get worse. My reason for saying that may have to do with the fact that other then Advair(puffer for asthma) I take no medication to control my joint inflammation which can be bad at times. At this point I would rather be on no drugs since Remicade and others caused me more problems then they solved, Advair does not seem to cause me issues.

All that being said, don't go thinking that they will get worse, I had a similar thought as you when I was going through the J-pouch but another thought occurred and that is, without the large intestine to cause havoc on, the immune system may focus on another area. I think my joint pain is just more noticeable now because all the pain my UC caused didn't allow me to notice the joint pain as much.

I am extremely happy with my J-pouch and wouldn't give it up for random flares that can't be controlled or any of the issues I went through with UC.

Good luck with your decisions and I hope you feel better soon!
Posted 6/16/2015 10:44 PM (GMT 0)
I have the very same question, posted on the UC forum. Since autoimmune related conditions are so prevalent in my family - mainly AS, and UC, but also psoriasis, asthma, and other conditions - I wonder if bowel removal would be the solution I am looking for.

I want to come off drugs like 6MP and Humira, but I fear that removing my bowel won't be the answer as sooner or later I'll be prescribed one or the other again for another autoimmune disease. In that case I might wonder whether I should have made the decision to remove my bowel.
Posted 6/20/2015 11:18 AM (GMT 0)
I had no choice ...my large intestine needed to come out ...it's been almost three years ...I had iritis once before my surgery and psoriasis in my younger years briefly ....now I have joint pain in my lower back.....and it's getting worse ....I do to think we are ever completely free from all of this
Posted 6/21/2015 7:13 PM (GMT 0)
Since having my colon removed and then ileostomy made permanent and having rectum out (sewn up, Barbie Butt) my UC is obviously gone.... my extra-intestinal symptoms of UC are mostly gone too... they def got better (some arthritic joints)
But I also have Psoriasis... at one point I had such a bad flare of guttate psoriasis that i was covered in leopard type spots from boobs to toes!

Despite Remicade sometimes causing psoriasis to flare, mine did not during the few infusions I received. And once my colon was out I did not have any issues with skin either. But I began flaring terribly in my remaining parts... so I got everything taken out and sewn up. Within a month psoriasis spots have started to crop up. 6 months later and I have a couple dozen here and there. My elbows are the worse theyve ever been. But with the medicated shampoo and scalp drops I've gotten my scalp almost completely clear.

I honestly believe these autoimmune disease go together. I still have some arthritic symptoms when it rains... could be from psoriasis. Maybe some day I will be diagnosed with another disease.
I am actually betting I will....

I think my body is bored not having a colon to pick on so thats why my psoriasis is bad.

due to a couple other skin issues going on {(not psoriasis) a rash on my leg not healing from antibiotics or creams and skin reaction around stoma from brand of appliance I use} I just really honestly believe that my body hates me - and I will NEVER be 100%.

not to be depressing... lol! I'm not depressed by it. I've gotten used to it these last almost 30 years :D
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