Question:

I have been diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. I am on prednisone because of the flare up and having too much pain in and around the area where leg ends and feet starts (I am not sure what that area is referred to). I find it hard to stand and walk. I also have pain in the neck. Please suggest as to what treatment is given in that case.

Answer:

The easiest part of your question to answer is regarding the area of pain you are describing. I believe you are thinking of your ankle. Haha.

Now, as far as treatment goes it does depend on what we actually think is happening at the neck and the ankle areas. As you have no doubt learned, Crohn’s disease is a condition involving inflammation of the digestive track. With that, there are a number of issues that can develop in the track itself. However, there are also a number of extra-intestinal complications that could develop. One of these included flare up’s of arthritic joints.

Treatment from a Physiotherapist will depend on exactly what we find to be an issue. It might include modalities for symptom relief, hands-on therapy, acupuncture, and a series of simple exercises that you can do to maintain joint range and proper muscle tone.

With respect to your ankle pain it might be important to inspect the skin around the ankle. If it appears red or spotty then it could be a separate skin complication (that tends to be found in the ankles) from the Crohn’s disease and would be issue that your Doctor must tackle.

It sounds like you maybe be having the fairly common flare of arthritic type pain associated with Crohn’s and I think a visit with your Physiotherapist would be a good idea.

Inspect your ankles for any excessive redness or spotting in the skin. If that is NOT present I would make an appointment with your local Physiotherapist and we will see what we can do to help.

Thank you for your question and good luck!