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Crohn's disease, a type of irritable bowel syndrome (IBD), is linked to a number of eye problems. Most medical reports don’t formally link Crohn's disease and dark eyes or list dark circles around your eyes — also called periorbital pigmentation — as a symptom.
Crohn’s disease, a type of irritable bowel syndrome (IBD), is linked to a number of eye problems. But most medical reports don’t formally link Crohn's disease and dark eyes or list dark circles around your eyes — also called periorbital pigmentation — as a symptom.
However, other symptoms of Crohn’s disease have been linked to dark eye circles. These include anemia, a condition where you have low iron levels in your blood. One study found that 10% of participants with excessive dark circles had anemia.
So, if you’ve been diagnosed with Crohn’s disease and have recently developed dark circles around your eyes, then anemia is a potential cause.
In addition, simply having Crohn’s disease can increase people’s stress levels. Increased stress can lead to a loss of sleep, which is the number one cause of dark circles around people's eyes.
What eye problems are common symptoms of Crohn’s disease?
Eye problems occur in approximately 10% of all people with an IBD. Almost all of these symptoms are treatable and won’t result in any permanent vision loss.
In Crohn’s disease, symptoms such as sudden pain, redness, and changes to your vision can set in quickly. Eye symptoms tend to be the most obvious during inflammation flare-ups and when your Crohn’s disease is localized in your colon. One study also indicates that eye symptoms are more common in younger populations with the condition.
You can also develop one of a handful of eye conditions thanks to this disease. Most of these are linked to some form of inflammation in your eye. They include:
- Uveitis. A condition that causes redness, pain, light sensitivity, and blurred vision. It tends to clear up when your IBD is under control. But your doctor may also prescribe corticosteroid eye drops to lower inflammation since the condition can become serious if left untreated.
- Keratopathy. This condition leads to white deposits around the edges of your cornea and develops specifically in some people with Crohn’s. The symptoms are generally unnoticeable and you won’t need any treatment.
- Episcleritis. A condition where the outer coating of the white of your eye, called the episclera, becomes inflamed. Your blood vessels dilate and the area turns red. The condition may clear up when your Crohn’s flare-up recedes but you could need steroid eye drops for treatment.
- Dry Eyes. Results from of lack of tears and comes with an increased risk of irritation, infection, and night blindness. Vitamin A supplements are an effective treatment and artificial tears can help relieve your symptoms.
Other areas of your eye can become inflamed from your IBD. These areas are less common but do include your retina and optic nerve.
It’s also possible for some of the medications that you need to treat Crohn’s disease to cause eye problems on their own. For example, long-term corticosteroid use could cause you to develop glaucoma — a condition which can severely limit your vision.
What are other causes of dark circles around your eyes?
You could have another underlying condition or situation, independent from your Crohn’s diagnosis, that’s contributing to the dark circles under your eyes. Examples of these possibilities include:
- Changes to your sleep schedule — particularly a loss of sleep
- Low levels of vitamin B12
- Problems with allergens
- A family history of these dark circles
- Certain habits, like frequently rubbing your eyes or spending large amounts of time in front of a computer screen
In some of these cases, simple changes to your habits or diet will help relieve your dark eye circles. You can also consult your doctor if the discoloration is persistent.
What is Crohn’s disease?
Crohn’s disease is one of many inflammatory bowel diseases, all of which create inflammation in some portion of your gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Your GI tract stretches all the way from your mouth, down through your stomach, out the duodenum, and into your intestines, finally ending at the anus.
Approximately half a million people in the U.S. have Crohn’s disease. There are five different categories of Crohn’s disease that are distinct because of where they cause inflammation along your GI tract. You can, for example, have a version of Crohn’s disease in your stomach.
But Crohn’s disease most commonly causes inflammation in your small intestine and the beginnings of your colon (large intestine). It tends to be patchy, so you’re likely to have areas of healthy tissue in between spots of inflammation.
Current theories state that Crohn’s disease is an autoimmune disorder where your body mistakes bacteria in your intestine for a threat. It causes inflammation in response to this threat.
Common symptoms of Crohn’s disease in the GI tract
Some symptoms are common to most types of Crohn’s disease. These are mostly because of the inflamed tissues. They include:
- Diarrhea
- Pain and cramps in your abdomen
- Weight loss
- Bleeding from your rectum
- Feeling an urgent need to have a bowel movement
- The feeling that you haven’t completely emptied your bowels
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What are other symptoms of Crohn’s outside of the intestine?
Like the eye problems discussed above, Crohn’s disease can have a large number of other symptoms that are outside of the GI tract. These include:
- Anemia
- Increased feelings of tiredness and exhaustion
- Fever
- Pain in your joints
- Nausea
- Loss of appetite
- Red, tender bumps forming under some areas of your skin
- Mouth sores
- Weight loss
- Night sweats
- Kidney stones
- Changes to your menstrual cycle
- Osteoporosis
Some of these may be due to problems with nutrient absorption due to the complications in your GI tract.
When should you talk to your doctor?
Dark circles around your eyes aren’t usually a major cause for concern. Simply noticing dark circles doesn’t mean that you need to seek medical attention, but it could be worth mentioning at your next doctor's appointment.
Crohn’s disease, however, is a serious condition that can lead to many long-term health consequences if left untreated. Be sure to talk to your doctor as soon as possible if you are experiencing any of the common symptoms of Crohn’s disease, particularly persistent diarrhea and pain from intestinal inflammation.
