Inflammation Question

I believe the answer is yes and the simple explanation for it is that the UC is gone, but the underlying autoimmune disorder which manifested in UC is not gone.

I have inflammation in the pouch, I tend to swell like crazy whenever I am surgeried, and my skin is extremely sensitive and gets irritated/inflammed more than is normal. The inflammatory response is merely a manifestion of the autoimmune disorder.

Actually, I don't think that is necessarily true as a general rule. Having a UC diagnosis should not mean that any injury or illness you may get would be worse or with a higher level of inflammation. I heal normally from an injury or other surgeries.

I don't even believe that a UC diagnosis would mean that you should always have elevated inflammatory markers in your blood tests. If that were true, there would be little value in doing those tests. If you are in remission, with nothing going on, those tests should be normal. Plus, minor elevations are not clinically signifigant, even in the general population.

Another thing about those tests is that they are non-specific, meaning they reflect inflammation anywhere in the body.

That said, having a UC diagnosis DOES mean that you are more likely to develop other autoimmune diseases. My CRP levels are always modestly elevated and my rheumatologist monitors it to evaluate my arthritis treatment. The other inflammatory marker, ESR, has always been normal for me.

Jan

I had UC, and J pouch surgery years ago, and I do not carry abnormal inflammatory markers.