Enteritis is inflammation of the small-bowel mucosa, most often triggered by infection, drugs, or autoimmune disease. It may occur alone or together with gastritis (gastroenteritis) or colitis (enterocolitis). Because the jejunum and ileum handle digestion, fluid balance, and nutrient absorption, their inflammation produces a characteristic cluster of abdominal and systemic signs that differ from pure colonic disorders. Core intestinal symptoms• Diarrhea: typically watery or loose, occasionally fatty and foul-smelling when bile-acid absorption is impaired; volume ranges from a few episodes daily to profuse stool every hour.• Cramping periumbilical pain: colicky waves that build and recede, often relieved transiently by passage... Learn more