Ulcerative Colitis
Ulcerative Colitis is a chronic disease of the large intestine, also known as the colon, in which the lining of the colon becomes inflamed and develops tiny open sores, or ulcers, that produce pus and mucus. The combination of inflammation and ulceration can cause abdominal discomfort and frequent emptying of the colon.
Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's are so similar in symptoms, that a term of Indeterminate Colitis (IC) has also been coined as a subgroup of IBD. Indeterminate colitis originally referred to those 10 to 15% of cases of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) in which there was difficulty distinguishing between Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's Disease in the biopsy.
Most cases of Indeterminate Colitis eventually evolve into definite Crohn's Disease or Ulcerative Colitis, but a percentage of patients remain with a diagnosis of IC for many years without ever showing typical features of either disease, suggesting that IC might represent a separate subgroup of IBD. Capsule endoscopy can help reclassify IC to Crohn's Disease as cited by Cohen el al in the 2008 publication Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition.
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