aetiology

Last reviewed 07/2021

The causes of toxic megacolon are either inflammatory or infectious:

  • inflammatory colitis:
    • ulcerative colitis
    • Crohn's disease

  • bacterial infections:
    • Clostridium difficile pseudomembranous colitis
    • Salmonella:
      • typhoid
      • non-typhoid
    • Shigella
  • Campylobacter
    • Yersinia

  • parasitic infections:
    • Entamoeba histolytica
    • Cryptosporidium

  • viral infections:
    • Cytomegalovirus colitis
    • culture negative colitis