7) Diagnosis
› Endoscopy and biopsy will show:
– In Crohn’s disease: There is an affection of the entire intestinal wall of any part of the gastrointestinal tract, especially the terminal ileum, in a discontinuous pattern, and granuloma formation
– In ulcerative colitis: There is an affection of the rectum with or without the colon in a continuous pattern. Only the mucosa and submucosa are affected. Crypt abscesses appear in 30% of the cases.
› Laboratory tests
– In ulcerative colitis, blood examination shows an autoantibody called pANCA (perinuclear antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies). Also, the fecal calprotectin test is sensitive to ulcerative colitis.
– In Crohn’s disease, blood examination shows an autoantibody called ASCA (Anti-saccharomyces cerevisiae antibody).
