Contents

Disclaimer

Oxford University Press makes no representation, express or implied, that the drug dosages in this book are correct. Readers must therefore always check the product information and clinical procedures with the most up to date published product information and data sheets provided by the manufacturers and the most recent codes of conduct and safety regulations. The authors and the publishers do not accept responsibility or legal liability for any errors in the text or for the misuse or misapplication of material in this work. Except where otherwise stated, drug dosages and recommendations are for the non-pregnant adult who is not breastfeeding.

Show Summary Details
Page of

Ischaemic bowel in the critically ill 

Ischaemic bowel in the critically ill
Chapter:
Ischaemic bowel in the critically ill
Author(s):

A. G. Peppelenbosch

and Martijn Poeze

DOI:
10.1093/med/9780199600830.003.0186
Page of

PRINTED FROM OXFORD MEDICINE ONLINE (www.oxfordmedicine.com). © Oxford University Press, 2021. All Rights Reserved. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single chapter of a title in Oxford Medicine Online for personal use (for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice).

date: 18 October 2021

Intestinal ischaemia is caused by occlusion of the visceral arteries, thrombosis of the mesenteric veins, or by (low-flow) non-occlusive mesenteric ischaemia (NOMI). Each condition has a specific diagnostic and therapeutic work-up and prognostic significance. The incidence of acute mesenteric infarction is as low as 0.63 cases/100,000 person years, but overall mortality rates remains high at 74%. In general, a high index of suspicion is necessary and should be followed by administering therapeutic low molecular weight heparin or systemic heparin infusion. In these patients resuscitation and organ support are essential, but should not delay diagnostic work-up, including CT-angiography. With arterial occlusion, revascularization should be performed if indicated, preferentially using endovascular techniques prior to laparotomy. For venous occlusion, thrombolytic therapy directly into the superior mesenteric artery or venous thrombectomy can be performed, followed by laparotomy. The treatment of NOMI is to treat the underlying cause.

Access to the complete content on Oxford Medicine Online requires a subscription or purchase. Public users are able to search the site and view the abstracts for each book and chapter without a subscription.

Please subscribe or login to access full text content.

If you have purchased a print title that contains an access token, please see the token for information about how to register your code.

For questions on access or troubleshooting, please check our FAQs, and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us.