1/2. Small-bowel investigation in occult gastrointestinal bleeding.Obscure gastrointestinal bleeding after careful endoscopy of the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract is predominantly of small-bowel origin. patients presenting with overt blood loss account for a select subpopulation of those with small-bowel bleeding. Although relatively rare, these patients often require repeated blood transfusions, investigation, and hospitalization before a diagnosis is reached. These events have a considerable negative impact on the patient's quality of life. Standard evaluation using enteroclysis, tagged red cell studies, and angiography are proven to be of limited value in this context. Push enteroscopy has significant advantages in this patient group, with the ability to deliver endoscopic therapy. Sonde enteroscopy is now reserved for a few patients to guide decisions on surgery, particularly in those with significant medical comorbidity. Definitive evaluation may require perioperative enteroscopy, but many patients can be managed without the need for surgery. A team approach by physician, radiologist, and surgeon following locally agreed algorithms is essential for the successful management of this challenging clinical problem.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/2. Secondary aortoduodenal fistula.Secondary aortoenteric fistula (SAF) is now recognized as an uncommon but exceedingly important complication of abdominal aortic reconstruction. The complication often occurs months to years after the original surgery. The main clinical manifestation of the disease is always upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Treatment of the disease is early surgical intervention. The mortality is high if no prompt operation. We present a case of secondary aortoduodenal fistula (SADF) found 20 days after aortic reconstructive surgery, with the clinical presentation of upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Even immediate exploratory laparotomy was performed, the patient died 48 hrs after the surgical management. Because of the increasing number of elective aortic aneurysm repairs in the aging population, it is likely that more patients with SAF will present to the clinical physicians in the future. So, a high index of suspicion is necessary for prompt diagnosis and treatment of this actually life-threatening event.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |