Future developments in diagnosis and treatment of inflammatory bowel disease.

The inflammatory bowel diseases ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease are probably syndromes rather than single entities. Neither the susceptibility genes nor definite environmental factors have been found thus far. The "immune concept" of these disorders might not include all patients. Consequently immune based new approaches on alternative etiological/pathophysiological pathways may be necessary. New developments in diagnostic techniques will probably improve patient acceptance and may even help to prevent carcinoma development.