Medical management of inflamatory bowel diseases--therapeutic options.

Corticosteroids and the 5-aminosalicylate (5-ASA) drugs still constitute the mainstays of therapy, with azatioprine/mercaptopurine an established second-line agent for resistant disease. Primarily nutritional therapy has a place for some patients with Crohn's disease, and alternative immunosupressants are finding their own disease. The medical management of inflammatory bowel diseases is poised to enter to new era if the current promise shown by investigatory immunomodulatory regimes translates into confirmed effective therapy.