Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Bowel obstruction, also known as intestinal obstruction, is a mechanical or functional obstruction of the intestines which prevents the normal movement of the products of digestion. [2] [5] Either the small bowel or large bowel may be affected. [1] Signs and symptoms include abdominal pain, vomiting, bloating and not passing gas. [1]
Bowel infarction or gangrenous bowel represents an irreversible injury to the intestine resulting from insufficient blood flow. It is considered a medical emergency because it can quickly result in life-threatening infection and death. [1] Any cause of bowel ischemia, the earlier reversible form of injury, may ultimately lead to infarction if ...
The treatment of intestinal ischemia depends on the cause and can be medical or surgical. However, if bowel has become necrotic, the only treatment is surgical removal of the dead segments of bowel. [34] In non-occlusive disease, where there is no blockage of the arteries supplying the bowel, the treatment is medical rather than surgical ...
Volvulus causes severe pain and progressive injury to the intestinal wall, with accumulation of gas and fluid in the portion of the bowel obstructed. [11] Ultimately, this can result in necrosis of the affected intestinal wall, acidosis, and death. This is known as a closed-loop obstruction because there exists an isolated ("closed") loop of bowel.
However, intussusception can cause a loop of bowel to become necrotic, secondary to ischemia due to compression to arterial blood supply. This leads to perforation and sepsis, which causes fever. In rare cases, intussusception may be a complication of Henoch–Schönlein purpura, an immune-mediated vasculitis disease in children. Such patients ...
Septic shock is a result of a systemic response to infection or multiple infectious causes. The precipitating infections that may lead to septic shock if severe enough include but are not limited to appendicitis, pneumonia, bacteremia, diverticulitis, pyelonephritis, meningitis, pancreatitis, necrotizing fasciitis, MRSA and mesenteric ischemia.
Ischemic colitis must be differentiated from the many other causes of abdominal pain and rectal bleeding (for example, infection, inflammatory bowel disease, diverticulosis, or colon cancer). It is also important to differentiate ischemic colitis, which often resolves on its own, from the more immediately life-threatening condition of acute ...
The distinction helps to narrow the possible causes and treatment. Common causes of small bowel obstruction include post-operative adhesions, hernias, intussusception, and intraabdominal tumors. Common causes of colonic obstruction include primary colon cancer, volvulus and post-operative adhesions. When the ileocecal valve is competent ...