IBS and IBD often cause similar symptoms of abdominal pain, cramping, and chronic diarrhea, making an accurate diagnosis difficult. Calprotectin reliably differentiates IBS from IBD using a patient-friendly, non-invasive, stool test.
Why use the Calprotectin test?
An invasive endoscopic/biopsy procedure is the gold-standard test used for patients presenting with symptoms that could indicate IBD. However, many patients undergoing invasive procedures are ultimately diagnosed with IBS, a non-inflammatory, functional disorder. Calprotectin offers several advantages:
- Fecal Calprotectin is an FDA-cleared stool test for differentiating IBS from IBD
- Calprotectin is an indicator of inflammation, which is commonly associated with IBD and other inflammatory conditions
- Fecal Calprotectin is described in the scientific literature to be a useful screening tool for identifying which patients may need endoscopy
- It is also described to be useful for quantifying the degree of inflammation, monitoring treatment, and assessing for relapse in IBD
