What are the characteristics of noninflammatory and inflammatory diarrhea syndromes?
- Noninflammatory diarrhea consists of a syndrome of watery, nonbloody, nonpurulent diarrhea, and often lacks prominent systemic signs and symptoms such as fever or myalgias.
- Specific etiologic factors often go undiagnosed and course is often self-limited. Inflammatory diarrhea consists of frequent, smaller volume, mucoid or bloody stools, often associated with tenesmus, fever, and more prominent or severe abdominal pain.
- On laboratory evaluation, inflammatory diarrhea exhibits positive fecal leukocytes and positive stool lactoferrin, and will almost always involve the colon (colitis) when there are large sheets of leukocytes present.
