How to Diagnose Colitis & Crohn's Disease

Colitis and Crohn's disease are two similar types of inflammatory bowel disease that can cause abdominal pain, diarrhea, dehydration, fever and other debilitating symptoms. If you suffer from any of these symptoms, take these steps toward a proper diagnosis so that you can get proper treatment and manage the disease before it gets worse.

Things You'll Need

• Gastroenterologist
• Stool sample

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Instructions

• 1

  See your doctor for a physical exam and get simple blood tests done to find out if you have an infection or signs of inflammation or anemia. Although blood tests alone can't diagnose colitis or Crohn's disease, they're a good starting point to rule out other potential conditions.

• 2

  Give your doctor a stool sample so he can see if there's any blood in it. It could mean you have an intestinal infection, which is one sign of Crohn's disease.

• 3

  Get a set of X-rays taken of your small intestine. These are called "upper GI series." You'll have to drink a chalky liquid containing Barium. It will coat your intestine to make it easier for the doctor to see inflammation, blockage or other problems. You may also want to get a CT scan or a "small bowel imaging" test done to narrow down other potential diagnoses.

• 4

  Schedule a sigmoidoscopy, a test that allows the doctor to look at the inside of the lower part of your colon. Other procedures your doctor may want you to get are a colonoscopy or an endoscopy. These tests enable him to look at the entire large intestine for any signs of colitis or Crohn's disease.

• 5

  Consider getting a Leukocyte Scintigraphy or "white blood cell scan." This test will show how many white blood cells are present in one area of the body to see if there is inflammation of the bowel.