Dental management of patients with inflammatory bowel disease

Ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease are the most common forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), both of unknown aetiology. These conditions are characterised by the chronic and recurrent inflammation of different parts of the gastrointestinal tract, but while in CD, chronic inflammation may affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract, in UC, mucosal inflammatory changes are confined to the colon. IBD is currently on the increase, and it is important for the dental professional to be familiar with the condition as patients with IBD may present oral manifestations of the underlying disease. Such manifestations of IBD may precede the onset of intestinal radiographic lesions by as much as a year, or even more. Treatments used to manage IBD can affect the delivery of routine dental care