Monocyte function in Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

Monocyte function as reflected by phagocytosis of Candida albicans and chemotaxis towards zymosan-activated serum has been assessed in Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Phagocytosis and random movement were significantly increased to a similar degree in both diseases when compared with controls (p less than 0.001). There was no significant difference in chemotaxis between the disease and control groups, although there was a trend towards its being increased in ulcerative colitis. There was no correlation between the results obtained and disease activity or medication.