Terms & Privacy

Effective date: April 19, 2026 | Last updated: July 15, 2026

Scope. This page governs IBDology.org and, except where a site posts its own policy, every site in the IBDology ecosystem: Pouchology.org, UColitis.org, IBDunclassified.org, IBDpsc.org, Pouchy.org, IBDeim.org, Crohnsology.org, pCrohns.org, Crohnz.org, iCrohnz.org, NSQIPIBD.org, and HolubarLab.org. iPouch.org maintains its own Terms & Privacy.

Medical Disclaimer

In a medical emergency, call 911 (U.S.) or your local emergency number. Do not use this site for urgent medical concerns.

Do Not Enter Protected Health Information (PHI). IBDology.org is not a HIPAA-covered system. Do not include patient names, dates of birth, medical record numbers, or any other individually identifiable health information in contact forms or queries.

IBDology.org and the IBDology ecosystem are educational resources for the IBD community. They do not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment recommendations.

The information presented on this website, including AI-generated summaries, is derived from published peer-reviewed literature and clinical guidance and is intended for educational purposes only. This content:

Is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment
Should not be used to make clinical decisions without consulting a qualified healthcare provider
May contain errors, omissions, or outdated information
Reflects the published literature, not the opinions of any individual member, their institution, or Cleveland Clinic
Is based on U.S. medical standards and may not apply in your jurisdiction

If you are a patient experiencing symptoms, contact your healthcare provider immediately. For patient-facing education, visit Pouchy.org (J-pouch), pCrohns.org (perianal Crohn’s), or Crohnz.org (intestinal Crohn’s).

Terms of Service

1. Service Description

IBDology.org is the hub of the IBDology ecosystem, a non-commercial family of patient- and provider-facing educational resources on inflammatory bowel disease and its surgical management, created by the Holubar Lab. The service is provided as-is for educational use.

2. Membership

Where a site in the ecosystem offers a signup or membership form, it is offered to qualified clinicians and researchers. By submitting a form, you agree to provide accurate professional information.

3. Acceptable Use

You agree to use IBDology.org and the ecosystem sites for lawful, non-commercial purposes. You may not:

Attempt to circumvent access controls
Use automated scripts to scrape content
Redistribute member-only materials outside the ecosystem
Use the service to make clinical decisions for patient care without independent verification
Submit protected health information (PHI) through any form or interface

4. No Warranty

The service is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, express or implied. We do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information. Service availability may be interrupted without notice.

5. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, IBDology.org, the ecosystem sites, their creators, and affiliated entities shall not be liable for any damages arising from the use of this service, including but not limited to direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, or punitive damages.

6. Changes

We may update these terms at any time. Continued use after changes constitutes acceptance of the revised terms. Material changes will be communicated via the registered email address of members.

7. Governing Law & Venue

These terms, and any dispute arising from the use of this service, are governed by the laws of the State of Ohio, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. Exclusive venue for any dispute lies in the state and federal courts located in Cuyahoga County, Ohio.

8. Severability

If any provision of these terms is held unenforceable, that provision will be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary, and the remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect.

9. Content Notices

Some material presented on the ecosystem sites (article abstracts, figures, and citation data) originates in the published literature and is presented for educational purposes with attribution. If you are a rights holder and believe your work is presented improperly, email webmaster@ibdology.org with the URL of the material; we will review and, where appropriate, remove it within 30 days.

Privacy Policy

What We Collect

Membership form data, name, email address, professional role, institution, city/country (when you submit the signup form)
Contact form data, name, email, message content (when you submit the contact form)
Provider account data, name, email address, professional role, NPI number (U.S. clinicians), institution, and country, when you register for provider sign-in on an ecosystem site. Sign-in uses single-use email links; no password is ever created or stored
Provider Ask & Search queries. On ecosystem sites with an AI “Ask” feature, questions submitted by signed-in providers are logged with a truncated copy of the answer and the requesting IP address, for audit and abuse prevention. Ask questions are processed by a third-party AI service to generate the answer. Do not include personal or patient information. Questions from visitors who are not signed in are not retained
Basic usage data: Cloudflare Web Analytics may record anonymous, aggregated performance data (page load times, browser type) with no personally identifiable information

What We Do NOT Collect

No passwords. Provider sign-in is passwordless (single-use email links); passwords are never created or stored
No tracking cookies or third-party advertising analytics
No protected health information (PHI)
No patient health data
No browsing history beyond this site

Data Storage & Sharing

Form submissions are stored on Cloudflare's global network (D1 database) and processed in the United States. We do not sell, trade, or share your personal information with third parties. Member names and institutions may be listed publicly on an ecosystem site only with your consent.

Children’s Privacy

The ecosystem sites are not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has submitted personal information, contact webmaster@ibdology.org and we will delete it.

Your Rights Under GDPR (EU/EEA Users)

If you are a resident of the European Union or European Economic Area, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) grants you the following rights regarding your personal data:

Right to access, request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
Right to rectification, request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
Right to erasure ("right to be forgotten"), request deletion of your data
Right to restrict processing, request we pause processing of your data
Right to data portability, request an exportable copy of your data
Right to object, object to processing based on legitimate interest
Right to withdraw consent, withdraw previously-given consent at any time
Right to lodge a complaint, with a supervisory authority in your EU member state

To exercise any of these rights, email webmaster@ibdology.org with the subject line "GDPR Request". We will respond within 30 days.

United States State Privacy Rights

We extend the same access, correction, and deletion rights described above to every user, regardless of residence and regardless of whether a particular state privacy law (e.g., California, Washington, Virginia) applies to this service. Use the contact information below to exercise them.

Legal Basis for Processing

Consent, for membership signup and email communication about ecosystem activities
Legitimate interest, for anonymous usage analytics via Cloudflare Web Analytics

Data Controller

The data controller for IBDology.org is Stefan D. Holubar, MD, MS, acting on behalf of the Holubar Lab. Contact: webmaster@ibdology.org.

Data Retention

Membership form submissions, retained for the duration of membership; deleted within 30 days of withdrawal request
Contact form submissions. Retained until the inquiry is resolved, then deleted within 30 days
Provider account data. Retained while your account is active; deleted within 30 days of a deletion request
Provider Ask-query logs. Retained for audit and abuse prevention while your account is active; deleted with your account. Logged IP addresses are removed automatically after 90 days
Basic usage data, anonymized, retained up to 90 days for service monitoring

International Data Transfers

Our servers are located in the United States (Cloudflare D1 database). If you access this site from the EU/EEA, your data will be transferred to the US. Cloudflare participates in the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and provides GDPR-aligned Standard Contractual Clauses as the transfer safeguard.

Cookies & Client-Side Storage

IBDology.org does not use tracking, advertising, or third-party analytics cookies. Cloudflare Web Analytics is cookieless. The site uses a small amount of sessionStorage to remember whether you have dismissed the patient disclaimer in the current browser session. This is strictly necessary UX state and does not identify you. On ecosystem sites with provider sign-in, a sign-in token is kept in your browser’s localStorage until you sign out, strictly necessary for the sign-in feature.

Data Breach Notification

In the event of a personal data breach that is likely to result in a risk to your rights and freedoms, we will notify the relevant supervisory authority without undue delay and, where feasible, within 72 hours of becoming aware of the breach. If the breach is likely to result in a high risk, we will also notify affected users directly via the email address on file.

Request Data Deletion / Withdrawal of Consent

You may withdraw consent or request deletion of your personal data at any time. To do so, use one of the following:

Request Data Deletion

We will confirm receipt within 7 days and complete deletion within 30 days, per GDPR Article 17. If we cannot fulfill the request (e.g., data no longer on file), we will explain why.

Contact

For questions about these policies or to request data deletion:

Stefan D. Holubar, MD, MS, FACS, FASCRS
Department of Colorectal Surgery, Cleveland Clinic
webmaster@ibdology.org

IBDology.org is a non-commercial academic project. It is not endorsed by or affiliated with any pharmaceutical company or medical device manufacturer.