Imaging of inflammatory bowel disease: CT and MR

Cross-sectional imaging has come to play a central role in the imaging of the abdomen. Concurrent to this, the role of CT and MRI in the imaging of inflammatory bowel disease has also increased in importance. These modalities offer numerous advantages over more traditional methods of radiologic diagnosis, and provide essential information not only for initial diagnosis, but for management, follow-up and detection of potential complications. On the horizon are several derivative techniques involving CT and MRI, potentially in combination with PET imaging; these may further improve the specificity and sensitivity of imaging modalities for diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease.