Colitis

In medicine, colitis (pl. colitides) refers to an inflammation of the colon and is often used to describe an inflammation of the large intestine (colon, caecum and rectum).

Colitides may be acute and self-limited or chronic, i.e. persistent, and broadly fits into the category of digestive diseases.

In a medical context, the label colitis (without qualification) is used if:

• The aetiology of the inflammation in the colon is undetermined; for example, colitis may be applied to Crohn's disease at a time when the diagnosis has not declared itself, or
• The context is clear; for example, an individual with ulcerative colitis is talking about their disease with a physician that knows the diagnosis.