Colitis

What Is Colitis?

Colitis is the inflammation of the inner lining of the colon. There are many causes of colitis including infection, inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are two types of IBD), ischemic colitis, allergic reactions, and microscopic colitis.

Symptoms of colitis depend upon the cause and may include:

• abdominal pain
• cramping
• diarrhea, with or without blood in the stool

Symptoms

Associated symptoms depend upon the cause of colitis and may include:

• fatigue
• fever/chills
• dehydration
• eye inflammation
• joint swelling
• canker sores
• skin inflammation

Treatment

Treatment of colitis depends upon the cause and often is focused on symptom relief, supportive care, and maintaining adequate hydration and pain control. Antibiotics may be prescribed to treat infectious causes of colitis. Some bacterial infections that cause colitis resolve without any antibiotic treatment.