Operative management of small bowel Crohn's disease

Despite advances in medical treatment, most patients who have Crohn's disease of the small intestine need surgery at some point during the course of their disease. Surgery is currently indicated for intractable disease and complications of the disease (strictures, abscesses, fistulas, hemorrhage). There is increasing interest in nonsurgical and minimal access strategies of dealing with complicated disease, however. These new approaches may enable postponement of surgery to a more favorable time, or conversion of a two-stage procedure involving a stoma to a one-stage resection with anastomosis. A continuing challenge is prevention of disease recurrence postoperatively.