Dr. Ayesha Cheema is a primary care doctor with Mercy Personal Physicians at Columbia. She offers experienced and thoughtful primary care for adults of Howard County.
Inflammatory bowel disease, or IBD, includes disorders that cause inflammation of the intestines. IBD is treated at Mercy by expert gastroenterologists.
The Institute for Gynecologic Care is the flagship Center of Excellence in the highly respected and widely acclaimed Weinberg Center for Women’s Health & Medicine at Mercy.
Mercy offers emergency care on the Downtown Baltimore campus 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (410-332-9477) with access to a trained emergency medicine team, diagnostic services and consultations with specialists.
In case of an Emergency, Dial 911 and follow the instructions of the EMS (Emergency Medical Services) team.
Mercy Medical Center's downtown campus includes our Main Hospital - The Mary Catherine Bunting Center, McAuley Plaza and The Weinberg Center.
General visiting hours at Mercy are 11:00 am to 8:30 pm. Hours vary by floor, please check with the nursing staff or call 410-332-9555.
Inflammatory bowel disease, or IBD, includes disorders that cause inflammation of the intestines. This chronic inflammatory disease of the digestive tract is thought to be caused by an abnormal function of the immune system, which reacts against the body’s own intestinal tissue. At The Center for Inflammatory Bowel and Colorectal Diseases at Mercy in Baltimore, Dr. Mary Harris and Dr. Matilda Hagan work with patients to diagnose, treat, and manage their inflammatory bowel disease. Women especially seek the expertise of Dr. Harris who is recognized as an authority on managing inflammatory bowel disease in conjunction with pregnancy.
Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are the two most common types of inflammatory bowel disease. The inflammation in Crohn’s disease can be located in patches throughout the digestive tract, whereas in ulcerative colitis, the inflammation is located in one continuous portion of the large intestine. Other types of inflammatory bowel disease can include collagenous colitis and lymphocytic colitis.
The various types of inflammatory bowel disease often have similar symptoms, which include:
To diagnose inflammatory bowel disease, various tests may be conducted, including:
Inflammatory bowel disease is first treated with drug therapy such as infliximab, also known as Remicade, biologic agents, immunomodulators, antibiotics, steroids, or mesalamine products. If medications are not successful, surgery may be needed to remove the bowel obstructions to relieve the symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease.
Dr. Paul Thuluvath leads a team of gastroenterology specialists in Baltimore, Maryland, who help patients find the best treatment options for digestive diseases and liver conditions.
After feeling ill on New Years Eve, Barbara had a screening that revealed a cancerous tumor in her colon.