Diagnosis

There’s no one test used to diagnose a child with ulcerative colitis. However, your doctor can do many different tests to rule out other conditions that have symptoms similar to ulcerative colitis.

They’ll begin by doing a physical exam and taking a health history of your child’s symptoms. They‘ll ask what makes the symptoms worse and better, and how long they’ve been taking place.

Further tests for ulcerative colitis include:

• blood tests, including checking for low red blood cell levels, which could indicate anemia, and high white blood cell levels, which is a sign of an immune system issue
• a stool sample to test for the presence of blood, unexpected bacteria, and parasites
• an upper or lower endoscopy, also known as a colonoscopy, to view or sample the inner portions of the digestive tract to check for signs of inflammation
• a barium enema, which helps your doctor better view the colon in X-rays and identify possible areas of narrowing or obstruction