Obstruction of the Large and Small Intestine

Causes, evaluation and surgical management of mechanical small bowel obstruction

“…Accurate early recognition of intestinal strangulation in patients with mechanical bowel obstruction is important to decide on emergency surgery or to allow safe nonoperative management of carefully selected patients. 11 Although close and careful clinical evaluation, in conjunction with laboratory and radiologic studies, is essential for the decision of proper management of patients with acute mechanical bowel obstruction, a preoperative diagnosis of bowel strangulation cannot be made or excluded reliably by any known parameter, combinations of parameters, or experienced by clinical judgement. Mechanical bowel obstruction is an old and common surgical emergency.…”

A rare cause of ileus: Gallstone ileus

“…Biliaryenteric fistulas commonly form as a result of recurrent cholecystitis 2 . Intestinal obstruction occurs if the gallstone is 2.5 cm or bigger 3 .…”

Risk factors for post-colectomy adhesive small bowel obstruction

“…These widespread adhesions differ from patient to patient, depending on the type of surgery and possible postoperative complications (1). Small bowel obstruction (SBO) is caused mainly by postoperative adhesions (more than 75% of all cases) (2)(3)(4)(5)(6), and is a common postoperative morbidity of colectomy for colorectal cancer (7). It leads to markedly lower patient quality of life, longer hospital stays and increased hospitalization costs (8).…”