Spectrum of non-inflammatory bowel disease and non-infectious colitis.

A variety of inflammatory diseases of the colon, which can be differentiated from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and infectious colitis by their clinical, endoscopic and histological characteristics, are reported as non-IBD and non-infectious colitis. These diseases include microscopic colitis, ischemic colitis, segmental colitis associated with diverticula, radiation colitis, diversion colitis, eosinophilic colitis and Behcet's colitis. The etiopathogenesis of most of these diseases remains obscure and the epidemiological data are rather limited. These conditions are often troublesome for the patient and are associated with diagnostic difficulties for the physician. In many cases the treatment is empirical and there is a need for future research using randomized controlled trials.