title: [Microscopic colitis--new insights relevant to clinical practice].
abstract: Microscopic colitis is an increasingly recognised chronic inflammatory bowel disease associated with watery, non-bloody diarrhoea. In addition, many patients suffer from abdominal pain, nocturnal diarrhoea, urgency and incontinence. The two traditional histological subtypes are collagenous colitis and lymphocytic colitis. A novel third subgroup is the so-called incomplete microscopic colitis which is clinically indistinguishable. At present, budesonide is the only evidenced-based effective therapy, however many problems in the long-term treatment strategy are still unsolved. The present paper reviews new developments in microscopic colitis which are relevant for clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: Facharztzentrum Eppendorf, Magen-Darm-Zentrum, Hamburg.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Miehlke
authors.affiliation: Universitätsklinikum, Institut für Pathologie, Dresden.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Aust
authors.affiliation: Klinikum Siloah, Medizinische Klinik I, Hannover.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Madisch
mesh_terms: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019819:Budesonide / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D046728:Colitis, Microscopic / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D019819:Budesonide