A non-invasive laboratory test, called Fecal Calprotectin, is readily available as a helpful diagnostic tool to monitor individuals with inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, indeterminate colitis) and to distinguish from irritable bowel syndrome.

Calprotectin is a protein found in human blood, saliva, cerebrospinal fluid, and urine when some part of the body is inflamed, although it is not always possible to tell the location of the inflammation during testing of these fluids. When detected in the stool, calprotectin has a direct relationship (consequence of neutrophil degranulation) to bowel mucosal damage, characteristic of inflammatory bowel disease.

If the test finds a large amount of calprotectin present in the stool, it is more likely that the patient has inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), while if the test comes back with low or normal levels of calprotectin, it points more toward irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a functional condition of altered bowel habits with no inflammation.