In May of 2015, during Digestive Disease Week ( DDW ), I had the honor of hosting the webcast Preparing for Procedures and Surgeries for the IBD Social Circle. The webcast panelist included Amber J. Tresca of AboutIBD.com, Dr. Megan Costedio of the Cleveland Clinic, Ryan Stevens of CrohnsGuy.com, Dr. Muhammad Ali of The University of Oklahoma, and Marisa Lauren Troy of JournalingIBD.org.

Our discussion covered the different types of IBD procedures and surgeries that patients find themselves going through:

• What are some of the procedures needed in order to diagnose a patient with IBD?
• How do GI’s prepare their patients for these types of procedures?
• What happens when the symptoms IBD patients experience aren’t aligned with the findings from a procedure?
• When is surgery needed for IBD patients?
• What are some of the different types of surgeries IBD patients go through?
• What is it like for patients before, during, and after these procedures and surgeries are performed?

What I love most about this webcast is that you honestly get both sides of what it’s like to have a procedure or surgery done. Dr. Ali and Dr. Costedio do a great job of giving us the inside knowledge of why these procedures and surgeries are needed plus how they perform them. You also get a first hand account of what a patient goes through as Ryan, Marisa, and Amber share their life experiences.

Click the play button below to watch the video: