Ulcerative colitis in an infant aged 20 months. A case report.

Bloody diarrhea is a common problem in early childhood, typically caused by anal fissures, infectious enteritis, allergic proctocolitis, swallowed maternal blood and intussusception. More rarely, it can also be caused by volvulus, coagulopathies, necrotizing enterocolitis, polyps, Meckel diverticulitis and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The incidence of IBD is on the rise in children, even affecting infants. The most common subtypes are Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). While IBD occurrence peaks in the second to third decades of life, paediatric IBD accounts for 7-20% of all cases. Within this age group, the highest rates are seen in the teenage years; however, very early onset IBD can be seen before six years of age. The classic symptoms of CD include abdominal pain, diarrhea and weight loss, while UC is typically associated with bloody diarrhea. The report describes the case of a 20-month-old boy with bloody diarrhea who was ultimately diagnosed with UC.