Authors: Meucci Gianmichele
Publish Date: 2008/10/01
Volume: 14, Issue: suppl_2, Pages: S159-S160
Abstract
The term “indeterminate colitis” IC was originally introduced in 1978 to describe surgical specimens from patients undergoing colectomy for inflammatory bowel disease IBD when the histological picture was not characteristic for either Crohns disease CD or ulcerative colitis UC Several studies have consistently shown that such a diagnosis could be made in 5–15 of cases However up to twothirds of these patients could later be reclassified as affected by 1 of the 2 major forms of IBD when all clinical radiological and endoscopic evidence was taken into account12Subsequently this term has been increasingly used to indicate nonoperated patients that were definitely affected by IBD confined to the colon but in which a clear diagnosis of either CD or UC could not be made It has been recently recommended that the term “IBD unclassified” should be preferred
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