Defective mucosal absorption, caused by defective luminal digestion, mucosal disease or structural disorders
Aetiology
Important causes of malabsorption include coeliac disease, Crohn’s disease, short bowel syndrome, cirrhosis and biliary obstruction, lactase deficiency, Whipple’s disease and tropical sprue
Clinical features
Diarrhoea
Malabsorptive stool
May be ‘hard to flush away’ due to fat globules making it float - steatorrhea