The diagnosis is usually confirmed by biopsies on colonoscopy. Fecal calprotectin is useful as an initial investigation, which may suggest the possibility of IBD, as this test is sensitive but not specific for IBD. Differential diagnosis Other diseases may cause an increased excretion of fecal calprotectin, such as infectious diarrhea, untreated coeliac disease, necrotizing enterocolitis, intestinal cystic fibrosis and neoplastic pediatric tumor cells. Conditions with similar symptoms as Crohn's disease includes intestinal tuberculosis, Behçet's disease, ulcerative colitis, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug<unk> , irritable bowel syndrome and coeliac disease. Conditions with similar symptoms as ulcerative colitis includes acute self-limiting colitis, amebic colitis, schistosomiasis, Crohn's disease, colon cancer, irritable bowel syndrome, intestinal tuberculosis and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug<unk> . Liver function tests are often elevated in inflammatory bowel disease, and are often mild and generally return spontaneously to normal levels. The most relevant mechanisms of elevated liver functions tests in IBD are drug-induced hepatotoxicity and fatty liver. Classification The chief types of inflammatory bowel disease are Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis (UC). Inflammatory bowel diseases fall into the class of autoimmune diseases, in which the body's own immune system attacks elements of the digestive system. Accounting for fewer cases are other forms of IBD, which are not always classified as typical IBD: * Microscopic colitis subdivided into collagenous colitis and lymphocytic colitis * Diversion colitis * Behçet's disease *Early Onset IBD * Indeterminate colitis No disease specific markers are currently known in the blood, enabling the reliable separation of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis patients. The way doctors can tell the difference between Crohn's disease and UC is the location and nature of the inflammatory changes. Crohn's can affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract, from mouth to anus (skip lesions), although a majority of the cases start in the terminal ileum. Ulcerative colitis, in contrast, is restricted to the colon and the rectum. Microscopically, ulcerative colitis is restricted to the mucosa (epithelial lining of the gut), while Crohn's disease affects the full thickness of the bowel wall ("transmural lesions"). Lastly, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis present with extra-intestinal manifestations (such as liver problems, arthritis, skin manifestations and eye problems) in different proportions. In 10–15% of cases, a definitive diagnosis neither of Crohn's disease nor of ulcerative colitis can be made because of idiosyncrasies in the presentation. In this case, a diagnosis of indeterminate colitis may be made. Although a recognised definition, not all centres refer to this.
medical cause of Protein losing enteropathy
medical cause of Malabsorption
medical cause of Zollinger–Ellison syndrome
complications of Primary biliary cholangitis
medical cause of Intestinal pseudo-obstruction
medical cause of Bowel obstruction
medical cause of Rhabdomyolysis
medical cause of Wandering spleen