Other Conditions With Symptoms Similar to Crohn's Disease

Many other intestinal conditions can cause symptoms similar to Crohn's disease, including:

• Diverticulitis, in which pouches (diverticula) that form in the wall of the large intestine (colon) become inflamed or infected.
• Colorectal cancer, which is the abnormal growth of cancer cells in the muscular tube that makes up the lower digestive tract (large intestine).
• Irritable bowel syndrome, a common digestive problem that causes episodes of abdominal pain, cramping or bloating, and diarrhea or constipation.
• Lactose intolerance, in which a person is not able to digest lactose, a natural sugar generally found in foods made with cow's milk, such as ice cream.
• Intestinal abscess, a pocket of pus that forms at the site of infected tissue in the intestine.
• Bacterial infection.