More On Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Eligible Individuals 1. You have been diagnosed with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis by a qualified physician. 2. Your willingness to submit a saliva sample for DNA testing and complete online surveys related to your condition. 3. You have access to the internet. 4. You are at least 6 years old (those under 18 require a parental consent to enroll). 5. You are not a current 23andMe customer.* 6. You reside in the United States.*If you are a current 23andMe customer, learn how you can participate here.

IBD – which includes both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis – is often difficult to diagnose. The symptoms can sometimes be confused with other conditions.

The symptoms can also come and go making arriving at an accurate diagnosis very difficult. Recently, Dr. Jennifer Choi, the Associate Director of UCLA’s Center for IBD, gave a detailed talk on the condition. Neither Dr. Choi nor the UCLA Center is involved with 23andMe’s study, but they are a great resource for information about the condition. While the video of that presentation is long, and is sometimes graphic, Dr. Choi very clearly explains everything from the anatomy involved to the differences between Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis.

It’s a helpful primer both for those who have the condition and people who care about them, who are trying to understand what they are going through. We’ve included the video below, but be forewarned that there are some graphic photos in the presentation that may be disturbing for some.