An evolutionary perspective on the causes and treatment of inflammatory bowel disease.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To use insights from evolutionary biology to assess the current evidence for the causes, treatment, and prevention of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

RECENT FINDINGS: When analyzed in the context of evolutionary adaptation, recent assessments of genetic, microbial, and environmental associations with IBD implicate infectious causation.

SUMMARY: An evolutionary perspective provides insight into the causes of IBD, interpretation of its manifestations, and assessment of interventions. The evidence implicating infectious causation suggests that future studies of IBD would benefit from increased focus on infectious causes and interventions that prevent or inhibit them.