Conditions & Diseases: Digestive System

Ulcerative Colitis

See Also:
Ulcerative Colitis: Introduction
Ulcerative Colitis: Types
Ulcerative Colitis: Causes & Risk Factors
Ulcerative Colitis: Signs & Symptoms
Ulcerative Colitis: Medical Tests & Diagnosis Methods
Ulcerative Colitis: Treatment Options

Types of Ulcerative Colitis

Ulcerative colitis is classified based on the location and extent of inflammation:

1. Ulcerative Proctitis: Ulcerative colitis involving the rectum is called ulcerative proctitis.

2. Proctosigmoiditis: Colitis of the rectum and sigmoid colon is called proctosigmoiditis.

3. Distal or Left-sided or Limited: Colitis affecting the entire left side of the colon i.e., rectum, sigmoid colon and descending colon is known as limited or distal or left-sided colitis.

4. Pancolitis: Ulcerative colitis involving the entire colon is called pancolitis (2).

5. Fulminant Colitis: It is a rare but severe form of pancolitis with symptoms of dehydration, severe abdominal pain, protracted diarrhea with bleeding and shock (3).

Symptoms of Ulcerative colitis can be mild to severe irrespective of the portion of colon affected with the condition fluctuating between periods of active disease (flare-ups) and inactive periods known as remission (2).

See Also:
Ulcerative Colitis: Introduction
Ulcerative Colitis: Types
Ulcerative Colitis: Causes & Risk Factors
Ulcerative Colitis: Signs & Symptoms
Ulcerative Colitis: Medical Tests & Diagnosis Methods
Ulcerative Colitis: Treatment Options

Article by Kona Vishnu, MS
Medical Writer,
OmniMedicalSearch.com