This article was last reviewed on
This article waslast modified on 10 July 2017.

We reported in a news item on 13 August 2010 that a new faecal test called calprotectin had been found to reduce the need for colonoscopy in patients who develop persistent or recurrent bouts of abdominal pain and diarrhoea. Faecal calprotectin concentrations are found to be increased in both of the inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Concentrations are not increased in patients suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). On 3 October 2013, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended that faecal calprotectin testing could be used as an option to support clinicians in making the diagnosis of IBD and IBS, in cases where bowel cancer is not suspected.