ABSTRACT
In 1932 B. B. Crohn, L. Ginzburg, and Oppenheimer separated out from a heterogeneous group of nonspecific granulomatous diseases of the bowel, a distinct entity which they called regional ileitis. Over the years, Crohn advanced the view that regional ileitis could arise acutely without antecedent symptoms, and in such cases carried a better prognosis than the chronic form of the disease. Whereas X-ray findings have always been the principal means of diagnosis for Crohn's disease, the radiologic changes in Yersinia enteritis have been described only recently. Identification of Yersinia as the cause of acute terminal ileitis has provided students of Yersiniosis with a tool for pathophysiologic investigation not available to workers in the field of Crohn's disease. The recent delineation of Yersinia enteritis as a distinct clinical entity reminds us that the bowel may have a limited repertoire of responses to various pathogenic stimuli.
