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Digestive Care Innovations Hub

Multidisciplinary Collaboration

Integrated IBD Care from Cradle to Adulthood

Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are the two prime forms of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) that cause inflammation, ulceration, and sometimes blockage and infection with pus collection in the intestine. The care of adults & children with IBD is complex and requires a team with a deep understanding and vast expertise of IBD. At NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia, your IBD care team of diverse experts works together on a plan of care customized to your needs and preferences.

Patients come to the multidisciplinary center for the latest, most advanced nonsurgical and surgical treatments. Our team uses a combination of medical, endoscopic, and surgical modalities, along with, nutritional support, & lifestyle change guidance to help patients minimize or avoid the risk of disease-associated complications.

If dietary and lifestyle changes and medications may not be enough to control your IBD symptoms, surgery may be necessary. We feature a team of IBD specialists and surgeons who pioneered procedures the availability of which are unique to NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia and not found elsewhere in the world. Patients travel from across the country and around the world to seek more permanent solutions from our world-renowned IBD specialists and surgeons.

As a leading academic medical center, our doctors are also researchers and we apply groundbreaking basic-science findings to the bedside to offer patients the latest clinical advances. When you come to us for your care, we assemble the team of providers you need to help you achieve wellness and a high quality of life to conquer IBD.

Benefits of a multidisciplinary IBD team at an academic medical center

  • An integrated team of experts. Your IBD care team includes gastroenterologists, surgeons, nurses, registered dietitians, gastrointestinal pathologists, gastrointestinal radiologists, pediatric gastroenterologists, psychologists, and others with the compassion and experience to care for people with IBD.
  • Coordination of care. Nurse navigators organize and expedite your visits, tests, and treatments—such as infusions of biologic therapies, endoscopic procedures, and surgery.
  • Convenient appointments. You can see team members from different areas of medicine in one location.
  • Referrals to other specialists. Sometimes the inflammation of IBD affects other parts of your body. If this is the case, we can refer you to other specialists such as ophthalmologists, rheumatologists, dermatologists, and infectious disease specialists—all available through NewYork-Presbyterian.
  • Pediatric IBD Transition Program. IBD is a chronic illness. We understand that and care for you during all phases of your life. A special transition program bridges care for adolescents from pediatric to adult IBD specialists.

Is it for me?

If you have the symptoms of IBD but have not yet been diagnosed, we can perform the necessary testing to determine the cause of the symptoms:

  • Frequent diarrhea, with loose or watery stools
  • Bleeding from the rectum
  • Fever
  • Fatigue
  • Unexplained weight loss
  • Loss of appetite
  • Growth failure in children

Since these symptoms can accompany other illnesses, it's important to see a doctor to find out what is causing yours. The sooner you have a diagnosis and start treatment, the sooner you can start feeling better.

Learn about one patient's experience with ulcerative colitis.