Abstract
The site of lesion in Campylobacter fetus ss. jejuni infection has been considered to be limited to the jejunum and ileum. Recently three patients, from whose stools Campylobacter was isolated, were investigated by colonofiberscopy. All of the three cases showed colonic abnormalities. Colonofiberscopic appearances of each case resembled that of aphthoid colitis, Crohn's colitis and ulcerative colitis respectively. Symptoms of these cases were bloody diarrhea, abdominal pain and fever, and one case pursued a protracted course with 107 days of active disease. Patients who were diagnosed as having idiopathic inflammatory bowel disease on clinical and endoscopic grounds in the past when the stool culture of Campylobacter had not been possible might well have been suffering from unrecognized Campylobacter colitis. Consequently Campylobacter colitis should be ruled out before diagnosing idiopathic inflammatory bowel disease.
