Screenings and Diagnosis

The first step in your IBD treatment.

At the Henry Ford Center for IBD, we offer diagnostic tests for ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, the two conditions that comprise inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Our doctors, surgeons and radiologists have the most advanced tools at their fingertips, providing you with an accurate understanding of your condition.

These diagnostic procedures require specialized training and technology and aren’t widely available. All are minimally invasive techniques that provide our doctors with detailed information about the location and severity of your inflammation. Once we understand your condition, you and your doctor will work together to develop a personalized treatment plan to improve your symptoms and address your unique concerns.

Our diagnostic tests for IBD

Depending on your symptoms, family history of IBD and other factors, your doctor may recommend one or more of these tests to help us understand and diagnose your condition:

• Laboratory tests: blood and stool tests that let us check for evidence of infections, anemia, inflammation or malnutrition
• CT and MR enterography: painless imaging tests that use X-rays or magnetic fields to create detailed images of your intestines
• Small-bowel endoscopy: a procedure to examine your small intestine using an endoscope (a thin, long, flexible tube with a light and a video camera)
• Video capsule endoscopy: a painless procedure that uses a tiny “pill” camera to take pictures as it travels the digestive tract
• Colonoscopy: a type of endoscopy that examines your large intestine (colon)
• Chromoendoscopy: an imaging test that uses a dye to let us better see precancerous cells, which could lead to digestive cancer

Diagnosing pouchitis

If you have had ileal pouch surgery (Ileal pouch anal anastomosis) to treat your ulcerative colitis in the past, and you’re experiencing bleeding or pain, the lining of your pouch may be inflamed. This condition is known as pouchitis.

Our specialists provide an endoscopic procedure called pouchoscopy to examine the pouch and the point where it connects to the anus. Our colorectal surgeons and gastroenterologists can help you manage this condition.