Calprotectin Qualitative
Faecal calprotectin is a protein released by inflamed intestinal tissue. This stool test helps distinguish inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) without an invasive procedure.
- DHA-licensed lab
- Includes Doctor Consultation
- Physician-reviewed
- Same Day Collection
24 hours
Turnaround
Stool
Sample
What the Calprotectin Qualitative test tells you
Calprotectin is a protein carried in large amounts by neutrophils, the white blood cells that rush to sites of inflammation. When the lining of the intestine becomes inflamed, neutrophils cross into the bowel and release calprotectin, which is stable enough to survive the journey through the gut and be measured in a stool sample. That biology is what makes it a direct window onto the intestinal wall without a camera.
Its main clinical value is separating inflammation from irritation. Loose stools, cramping, urgency and bloating are common to both inflammatory bowel disease, meaning Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, and to irritable bowel syndrome, yet the two are managed very differently. Calprotectin is typically raised when the bowel lining is genuinely inflamed and typically not raised in irritable bowel syndrome. That helps a doctor decide who needs a colonoscopy and who can be reassured and managed another way, which can spare someone an uncomfortable procedure they do not need.
This test is reported qualitatively at Intel Lab, meaning it indicates whether calprotectin is present at a level suggesting intestinal inflammation rather than giving a figure to track over time. It is not specific to any one disease: gut infections, anti-inflammatory painkillers and other causes of bowel inflammation raise it too. So it tells you that inflammation is there without naming its cause, and the result is one input into a picture that includes your symptoms, examination, blood tests and, where needed, endoscopy.
Recommended to differentiate IBD from functional disorders like IBS, monitor disease activity in known IBD, and assess treatment response.
- Telling IBD from IBS
The commonest reason to test. Inflammation of the bowel lining raises calprotectin, while irritable bowel syndrome typically does not.
- Avoiding unnecessary endoscopy
A negative result in someone with low prior suspicion can spare an invasive procedure and support a different line of management.
- Following known IBD
In someone already diagnosed, the test reflects whether the bowel lining is quiet or actively inflamed, which symptoms alone do not always reveal.
- A non-invasive stool test
It reads inflammation directly from the gut using a sample you collect at home, with no bowel preparation and no sedation.
Reasons your doctor may request the Calprotectin Qualitative test
Your doctor may order this test for any of the reasons below. Some are routine checks, others follow specific symptoms or an earlier result.
Bowel symptoms
- Diarrhoea or a change in bowel habit lasting more than a few weeks.
- Abdominal pain with urgency, mucus, or unexplained weight loss.
- Investigating a child or adult with unexplained anaemia alongside gut symptoms.
Telling IBD from IBS
- Distinguishing inflammatory bowel disease from irritable bowel syndrome before deciding on colonoscopy.
Known inflammatory bowel disease
- Monitoring disease activity in someone already diagnosed with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis.
- Assessing whether treatment for inflammatory bowel disease has calmed the bowel lining.
A Not Detected result means no calprotectin was found at the level this test reports. Significant inflammation of the bowel lining is then unlikely, which fits better with irritable bowel syndrome than with inflammatory bowel disease, although disease confined to the small intestine can still be missed. A Detected result means white cells have been crossing into the bowel and the lining is inflamed. Detected does not name a cause. Active Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis raise it, but so do gut infections, regular anti-inflammatory painkillers, coeliac disease, polyps and recent bleeding into the gut. Because the test is reported qualitatively, it shows presence rather than a figure you can track from visit to visit. Your doctor reads it alongside your symptoms, examination, blood tests and, where needed, endoscopy.
Medically reviewed by Dr Nirupama Sabhapathy
This test is reported descriptively rather than on a numeric scale: each finding below explains what your report may say.
No calprotectin found in the stool: significant bowel inflammation is unlikely.
Calprotectin found in the stool: this points to bowel inflammation, and further assessment follows.
Ranges are a guide: your physician interprets your result alongside your symptoms and history.
What a higher result can point to
- Active inflammatory bowel disease, including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
- Bacterial, viral or parasitic gastroenteritis, which inflames the bowel temporarily.
- Regular use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory painkillers, which can irritate the intestinal lining.
- Coeliac disease and other causes of damage to the lining of the small bowel.
- Colorectal polyps or tumours, and inflammation of diverticula.
- Recent bleeding into the gut, since blood carries neutrophils into the stool.
These are possibilities, not diagnoses. A single value outside the reference range is interpreted alongside your symptoms, history and other tests: your doctor decides what it means for you.
What this test cannot tell you
- A raised result shows that inflammation is present but does not say what is causing it or where in the bowel it sits.
- A result that is not raised makes significant bowel inflammation unlikely but does not entirely exclude it, particularly for disease confined to the small intestine.
- Recent anti-inflammatory painkillers, a passing gut infection, or bleeding from any cause can raise the result without inflammatory bowel disease being present.
- A low or negative result has no meaning of its own beyond the absence of detectable intestinal inflammation.
Collecting your sample safely
- No needle is involved, and collecting the sample carries no physical risk.
- Wash your hands well with soap and water afterwards, since stool can carry infection.
- Keep the sample clear of urine and toilet water, close the container firmly and keep it cool until it is collected.
- 1Calprotectin comes from white cells in the bowel wall, so it reflects inflammation in the gut itself rather than in the body generally.
- 2Its main job is to help separate inflammatory bowel disease from irritable bowel syndrome.
- 3A raised result points to inflammation but not to a specific diagnosis, and further assessment follows.
- 4Painkillers, gut infections and bleeding can raise it independently of inflammatory bowel disease.
- 5A negative result is reassuring and needs no further explanation in itself.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about the Calprotectin Qualitative test. Can't find what you're looking for?
Talk to our team→A Detected result means white cells have been crossing into the bowel and the lining is inflamed. It does not name a cause: active Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis raise it, but so do gut infections, regular anti-inflammatory painkillers, coeliac disease, polyps and recent bleeding into the gut. Your doctor decides on further assessment, which may include endoscopy.
Not Detected means no calprotectin was found at the level this test reports, so significant inflammation of the bowel lining is unlikely. That fits better with irritable bowel syndrome than with inflammatory bowel disease. It does not entirely exclude inflammation, particularly disease confined to the small intestine, so persistent or worrying symptoms still need review.
Both can cause abdominal pain, bloating and a change in bowel habit, but only inflammatory bowel disease inflames the bowel wall. Calprotectin comes from white cells in that wall, so it is usually found in active Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis and not in irritable bowel syndrome. This helps your doctor decide who needs endoscopy and who can be managed without it.
It can show whether inflammation is present at a given time, which helps judge disease activity and response to treatment. Because this test is reported qualitatively, as Detected or Not Detected, it shows presence rather than a figure that can be tracked rising or falling from visit to visit. Your doctor reads it with your symptoms and other results.
Collect it at home in the container provided, taking a portion of the passed stool and keeping it clear of urine and toilet water, since contamination makes the sample unusable. Keep it cool and return it promptly. Postpone collection during a period or if haemorrhoids are bleeding, and mention any recent stomach bug, as both can raise the result.
No. It means the lining of your bowel is inflamed. Gut infections, anti-inflammatory painkillers, coeliac disease and other conditions do the same thing. Your doctor uses the result alongside your symptoms and other tests to decide whether endoscopy is the right next step.
Yes. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen, diclofenac and aspirin can irritate the intestinal lining enough to raise calprotectin in someone with no bowel disease at all. Tell the team what you have taken and when, and your doctor may prefer to test after a break from them.
Blood markers of inflammation such as CRP and ESR rise for reasons anywhere in the body. Calprotectin is released into the bowel itself, so it is far more specific to the intestine and can pick up inflammation of the lining that blood tests miss.
That is your doctor's decision. A negative result makes significant bowel inflammation much less likely and often supports managing symptoms without endoscopy, but features such as bleeding, weight loss or a strong family history may still make a direct look worthwhile.
No. You can eat normally before collecting the stool sample. Tell your doctor if you have taken ibuprofen, diclofenac, aspirin or similar painkillers in the days before, because they can raise calprotectin without any bowel disease.
The calprotectin test is AED 275, including a physician-reviewed report, with results usually within 24 hours. Home collection anywhere in Dubai is free when your order reaches AED 300 or includes a package; below that, a AED 100 home collection fee applies (AED 50 for a lab walk-in).