Inflammation or infection of small pouches (diverticula) in the colon, causing pain, fever, and digestive problems.
From Latin 'diverticulum' (small pouch) + '-itis' (suffix indicating inflammation or disease). The term emerged in medical literature in the early 20th century as the condition became recognized and studied.
Diverticulitis can mimic appendicitis so closely that emergency rooms sometimes discover what they thought was appendicitis is actually a burst diverticulum—CT scans revolutionized diagnosis in the 1980s-90s.
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