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You are here : Healthopedia.com > Medical Encyclopedia > Diseases and Conditions > Colitis: Diagnosis & Tests
      Category : Health Centers > Digestive System

Colitis

Alternate Names : Inflammation of the Colon

Colitis | Symptoms & Signs | Diagnosis & Tests | Prevention & Expectations | Treatment & Monitoring | Pictures and Images | Attribution


How is the condition diagnosed?

Diagnosis of colitis begins with a history and physical exam. A specimen of the person's stool may be examined under a microscope. The healthcare provider may order a barium enema. This is an X-ray test done after a contrast agent is injected into the bowel through the rectum.

The provider may also order a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy. These procedures involve putting a thin tube into the rectum. The tube has a light and a camera on the end of it. The doctor can advance the tube to view the inside of the bowels. A colonoscopy goes deeper into the bowel than a sigmoidoscopy.


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Colitis: Symptoms & Signs

 

Colitis: Prevention & Expectations

Author: Adam Brochert, MD
Reviewer: Gail Hendrickson, RN, BS
Date Reviewed: 06/06/01









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Page Last Updated: 30th May, 2006