What should you know about distal ulcerative colitis?

Distal describes where ulcerative colitis is active rather than how severe it must be. Inflammation may affect the rectum alone or extend into the sigmoid colon. During a flare, bowel movements can be frequent, urgent, loose, or mixed with blood or mucus. Some people also feel abdominal pain or a persistent need to open their bowels. Symptoms can settle and return, so a change from your usual pattern deserves review rather than self-diagnosis.

A GP Consultation can review your symptoms, medicines, hydration, and any previous diagnosis. A clinician may arrange stool or blood tests and refer you for examination of the bowel. Treatment is selected according to the affected area and flare pattern; medicines applied locally may be considered when inflammation is near the rectum. Take prescribed treatment consistently and record bowel frequency, bleeding, pain, and triggers. Do not stop maintenance medicine without advice.

Seek urgent help if bleeding is heavy or persistent, you have severe or increasing Abdominal Pain, feel faint, cannot keep fluids down, or develop fever with a marked change in bowel symptoms. Diarrhoea with signs of dehydration, such as very little urine or unusual drowsiness, also needs prompt attention. Contact your care team early if a flare is worsening despite your plan.

Ask which part of the bowel is affected, how active the inflammation appears, which treatment is local or oral, what monitoring you need, and when Colorectal Cancer Screening is appropriate for your history.