ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) refers to Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Both are chronic systemic diseases that affect women of reproductive age. They have a protracted relapsing and remitting course that extends over years. Although they share several common features, there are distinct differences between the two conditions summarized in Table 11.1. Differentiating between UC and CD, however, may be impossible in 15% of patients [1].
