Dr. Elizabeth Squirell

Calprotectin stool test

A simple stool test that shows whether there is inflammation in your bowel. Here is how to collect it, what the numbers mean, and what can throw it off.

Reviewed October 2026 5 min read

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At a glance

  • Calprotectin is a stool test for inflammation in the bowel. It helps your team check your IBD without a scope.
  • Use the container from the lab. If you can, collect from your first bowel movement of the morning.
  • Keep the sample free of urine and toilet water. Label it and drop it off as the lab tells you.
  • Avoid anti-inflammatory pain pills like ibuprofen (Advil) and naproxen (Aleve) before the test if you can. They can raise the result.
  • A low result means inflammation is unlikely. A high result means there may be inflammation, so your team will decide the next step.
  • Labs use slightly different cut-offs. Your team looks at your results over time, not just one number.
  • In Ontario, community labs charge a fee for this test, because OHIP does not cover it there. Ask your clinic where to go and what it costs.
  • Patients of Dr. Squirell's IBD clinic: the KHSC lab in Kingston does this test for free. You need to bring the sample back to that lab.

What is calprotectin?

Calprotectin is a protein found in white blood cells. When the bowel is inflamed, white blood cells gather there. Some calprotectin then passes out in your stool (poop). The more inflammation, the more calprotectin.

The test measures calprotectin in a small sample of stool. You may see it called fecal calprotectin, FCP or FC.

Why your team orders it

  • To check if IBD is active. It can show inflammation even before you feel a flare.
  • To see if a treatment is working. The number should fall as inflammation heals.
  • To avoid some scopes. If you feel well and your result is low, you may not need a colonoscopy just to check.
  • To sort out symptoms. If you have symptoms but a low result, inflammation is less likely. Your team may then look for other causes, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
  • In pregnancy. Pregnancy does not change the result, so it is a safe and useful check in each trimester.

How to collect the sample

Your clinic or lab will give you a requisition (order form) and a container. Follow the lab’s own instructions. In general:

  1. Use the first bowel movement of the day if you can

    Results can vary from day to day. Collecting at the same time of day each time helps.

  2. Catch the stool before it touches the toilet water

    You can use a clean, dry plastic container, a “toilet hat” from the pharmacy, or plastic wrap stretched over the toilet bowl under the seat.

  3. Keep urine out of it

    Do not let urine mix with the stool. Pee first if you need to.

  4. Use the scoop

    Use the scoop in the lid to put a small amount into the container. Do not overfill it.

  5. Close it tightly and label it

    Write your name and the date on it, and wash your hands.

  6. Drop it off

    Take it to the lab as they instruct, with your requisition.

What the result means

Results are given in micrograms per gram (µg/g). Labs and doctors use slightly different cut-offs. This is a rough guide:

What the result often means
  • Under 50Normal. Inflammation is unlikely.
  • 50 to 100In someone with IBD, this usually still means the bowel is calm.
  • 100 to 250A grey zone. There may be some inflammation. Your team may repeat the test or look further.
  • Over 250Inflammation is likely. Your team will decide the next step.

Some points to keep in mind:

  • Trends matter more than one number. Your team compares your result with your past results. A result taken when you are well is a useful baseline.
  • Results can vary. Two samples taken a day apart can give different numbers. Different labs use different methods.
  • A high number is not a diagnosis by itself. Your team may suggest a scope, an ultrasound or other tests to find the cause.
  • A low number with ongoing symptoms may mean something other than inflammation is causing them. Your team will look into it.

Things that can raise it

Calprotectin rises with inflammation from any cause, not only IBD. Tell your team if you have had any of these:

  • Anti-inflammatory pain pills (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) and naproxen (Aleve). Some labs ask you to stop them for 2 weeks before the test. Ask your doctor first if you take them for another condition.
  • Acid-lowering pills called PPIs, such as pantoprazole or omeprazole. These may raise the result a little. Do not stop them without asking.
  • A stomach or bowel infection. Your team may test for infection too.
  • Diverticulitis, an infection or inflammation of small pouches in the colon.
  • Polyps or colon cancer.

Cost in Ontario

In Ontario, community labs such as LifeLabs list this test as not covered by OHIP. It is still not on OHIP’s list of covered lab tests in 2026. LifeLabs has listed prices of about $140 to $150. Some private health plans cover it.

Before you go, ask your IBD clinic or the lab if you will have to pay. If cost is a problem, tell your team. They may be able to suggest another option.

Read next

Sources for this guide

Sources

  1. Singh S, Ananthakrishnan AN, Nguyen NH, et al. AGA Clinical Practice Guideline on the Role of Biomarkers for the Management of Ulcerative Colitis. Gastroenterology 2023;164(3):344–72. PMID 36822736 In UC in symptomatic remission, fecal calprotectin under 150 µg/g helps rule out active inflammation and avoid routine scopes; above 150 µg/g with moderate to severe symptoms supports treatment decisions; a scope is advised when symptoms and biomarkers disagree.
  2. Lutz M, Horst S, Caldera F. Applying biomarkers in treat-to-target approach for IBD. Curr Gastroenterol Rep 2025;27(1):41. PMID 40540152 Collect at the same time of day, such as the first bowel movement in the morning, to reduce variation; a baseline value helps; normal cut-offs used range from 50 to 250 µg/g; elevated often >150 in UC and 200–300 in Crohn's; results vary between days and assays; NSAIDs, infection, diverticulitis and colorectal cancer can raise it; test for infection when it is high.
  3. Sandberg-Janzon A, Karling P. Prescription of NSAIDs and proton pump inhibitors are associated with increased faecal calprotectin levels in patients with functional bowel disorder: an observational study. Scand J Gastroenterol 2025;60(7):635–42. PMID 40438967 Recent PPI or NSAID use was linked to higher calprotectin (PPI median 66 vs 23 µg/g; NSAID 57 vs 25 µg/g).
  4. Squirell E, Meade S, Leung Y. The fundamentals of inflammatory bowel disease management in pregnancy: a practical review for the gastroenterologist. J Can Assoc Gastroenterol 2024;7(1):121–31. PMID 38314178 Fecal calprotectin is unaffected by pregnancy; check before conception and each trimester; it can rise before symptoms of a flare.
  5. Mahadevan U, Seow CH, Barnes EL, et al. Global Consensus Statement on the Management of Pregnancy in Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis 2025;31(10):2615–64. PMID 40874613 Fecal calprotectin is useful for monitoring disease activity in pregnancy.
  6. LifeLabs. Fecal calprotectin testing (accessed October 2026). Requisition required; containers from Patient Service Centres; avoid NSAIDs for 2 weeks before collection; price listed as $149, paid at the Patient Service Centre (checked 11 October 2026). The page's 'uninsured except for patients diagnosed with IBD' wording matches British Columbia's MSP rule (LifeLabs ordering notice, March 2021: MSP covers it only for diagnosed IBD), not Ontario.
  7. LifeLabs Ontario. Non-OHIP billable test list, effective June 9, 2025 (as posted by Norfolk General Hospital). Calprotectin (stool) is on the non-OHIP billable list, $140.
  8. Ontario Ministry of Health. Schedule of Benefits for Laboratory Services, effective April 1, 2026, and OHIP InfoBulletin 260310 (tests added April 1, 2026). Fecal calprotectin is not listed as an insured community lab test. The April 2026 update moved C. difficile, celiac, ApoB, Lp(a), NT-proBNP and STI tests into OHIP, but not calprotectin.
  9. Bressler B, Panaccione R, Fedorak RN, Seidman EG. Clinicians' guide to the use of fecal calprotectin to identify and monitor disease activity in inflammatory bowel disease. Can J Gastroenterol Hepatol 2015;29:369–72. PMID 26125109 Canadian guidance: first stool of the day; under 50–100 µg/g quiet disease likely, continue therapy; 100–250 inflammation possible, further testing; over 250 active inflammation likely.
  10. Kingston Health Sciences Centre IBD clinic (Dr. E. Squirell). Local practice, October 2026. KHSC runs fecal calprotectin at no charge for the clinic's patients, but the sample must be brought back to the KHSC lab. For patients on an advanced therapy, the test can often be obtained at no charge through the drug's patient support program.

This guide is for general education. It can't replace advice from your own care team, who know your health history.

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