Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Intestinal Obstruction
Intestinal Obstruction
R.NANDINII
GROUP K1
OVERVIEW:
•CLASSIFICATION
•COMMON CAUSES OF OBSTRUCTION
•CLINICAL FEATURES
•INVESTIGATION
•TREATMENT
INTRODUCTION
Accounts for 5% of all acute surgical admissions
Patients are often extremely ill requiring prompt
assessment, resuscitation and intensive monitoring
Obstruction
A mechanical blockage arising from a structural abnormality that presents a
physical barrier to the progression of gut contents.
Ileus
is a paralytic or functional variety of obstruction
Obstruction is:
-Partial or complete
-Simple or strangulated
CLASSIFICATION
DYNAMIC OBSTRUCTION
(MECHANICAL)
CAUSES OF I.O (DYNAMIC)
PATHOPHYSIOLOGY:
OBSTRUCTION BY ADHESIONS
• Peritoneal irritation local fibrin production produces adhesions between apposed surfaces
• As early as 4 weeks post laparotomy. The majority of patients present between 1-5 years
Colorectal Surgery 25%
Gynaecological 20%
Appendectomy 14%
• Prevention: good surgical technique, washing of the peritoneal cavity with saline to remove clots,
etc, minimizing contact w/ gauze, covering anastomosis & raw peritoneal surfaces
TREATMENT OF ADHESIVE OBSTRUCTION
AETIOLOGY:
1. CARCINOMA:
THE COMMONEST CAUSE, 18% OF COLONIC CA. PRESENT WITH OBSTRUCTION
2. BENIGN STRICTURE:
DUE TO DIVERTICULAR DISEASE, ISCHEMIA, INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE.
3. VOLVULUS:
-SIGMOID VOLVULUS/CAECAL VOLVULUS
4. HERNIA.
5. CONGENITAL : HIRSCHPRUNG, ANAL STENOSIS AND AGENESIS
CLINICAL FEATURES
HIGH SMALL BOWEL OBSTRUCTION CARDINAL
FEATURES:
VOMITING OCCURS EARLY AND IS PROFUSE WITH
RAPID DEHYDRATION.
Colicky pain
Vomiting
DISTENSION IS MINIMAL WITH LITTLE EVIDENCE OF
FLUID LEVELS ON ABDOMINAL RADIOGRAPHY
Abd distention
Constipation
LOW SMALL BOWEL OBSTRUCTION
PAIN IS PREDOMINANT WITH CENTRAL DISTENSION.
VOMITING IS DELAYED.
OTHER FEATURES:
Dehydration
MULTIPLE CENTRAL FLUID LEVELS ARE SEEN ON
RADIOGRAPHY
Hypokalaemia
Pyrexia
LARGE BOWEL OBSTRUCTION Abd tenderness
DISTENSION IS EARLY AND PRONOUNCED.
PAIN IS MILD AND VOMITING AND DEHYDRATION ARE
LATE.
THE PROXIMAL COLON AND CAECUM ARE DISTENDED
ON ABDOMINAL RADIOGRAPHY
PHYSICAL EXAMINATION
INSPECTION
ABDOMINAL DISTENTION, SCARS, VISIBLE
PERISTALSIS.
PALPATION
MASS, TENDERNESS, GUARDING
PERCUSSION
TYMPHANIC, DULLNESS
AUSCULTATION
BOWEL SOUND ARE HIGH PITCH AND INCREASE IN
INVESTIGATIONS:
• LAB:
• FBC (LEUKOCYTOSIS, ANAEMIA, HEMATOCRIT, PLATELETS)
• CLOTTING PROFILE
• ARTERIAL BLOOD GASSES
• U& CRT, NA, K, AMYLASE, LFT AND GLUCOSE, LDH
• GROUP AND SAVE (X-MATCH IF NEEDED)
• OPTIONAL (ESR, CRP, HEPATITIS PROFILE)
• RADIOLOGICAL:
• PLAIN ABDOMINAL XRAYS
• USS ( FREE FLUID, MASSES, MUCOSAL FOLDS, PATTERN OF PARISTALSIS,
DOPPLER OF MESENTERIC VASULATURE, SOLID ORGANS)
• OTHER ADVANCED STUDIES (CT, MRI, CONTRAST STUDIES)
Figure 3. Lateral decubitus view
Fluid levels with gas above; of the abdomen, showing air-fluid
‘stepladder pattern’. Ileal Supine radiograph from a patient with levels consistent with intestinal
obstruction by adhesions; patient complete small bowel obstruction obstruction (a rro ws ).
erect. shows distended small bowel loops in
the central abdomen with prominent
valvulae conniventes (small white
arrow)
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SMALL AND
LARGE BOWEL OBSTRUCTION
Large bowel Small Bowel
•Peripheral ( diameter 6 cm •Central ( diameter 3 cm max)
max) •Vulvulae coniventae
•Presence of haustration •Ileum: may appear tubeless
ROLE OF CT
• USED WITH IV CONTRAST, ORAL AND RECTAL CONTRAST
(TRIPLE CONTRAST).
• IT CAN DEFINE:
• THE LEVEL OF OBSTRUCTION
• THE DEGREE OF OBSTRUCTION
• THE CAUSE: VOLVULUS, HERNIA, LUMINAL AND MURAL
CAUSES
• THE DEGREE OF ISCHAEMIA
• FREE FLUID AND GAS
• FIGURE: AXIAL COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY SCAN
SHOWING DILATED, CONTRAST-FILLED LOOPS OF BOWEL
• ENSURE: PATIENT VITALLY STABLE WITH NO RENAL ON THE PATIENT’S LEFT (YELLO W ARRO WS), WITH
DECOMPRESSED DISTAL SMALL BOWEL ON THE
FAILURE AND NO PREVIOUS ALERGY TO IODINE PATIENT’S RIGHT (RED ARRO WS). THE CAUSE OF
OBSTRUCTION, AN INCARCERATED UMBILICAL HERNIA,
CAN ALSO BE SEEN (G REENARRO W), WITH PROXIMALLY
DILATED BOWEL ENTERING THE HERNIA AND
DECOMPRESSED
Source: Jackson, PG. & Raiji M., Evaluation and Management of Intestinal Obstruction, BOWEL EXITING
January 2011, American THEofHERNIA.
Academy Family Physicians
ROLE OF BARIUM GASTROGRAFIN STUDIES
Barium should not be used in
a patient with peritonitis
• RELATIVE
• PALPABLE MASS LESION
• 'VIRGIN' ABDOMEN
• FAILURE TO IMPROVE
• TRIAL OF CONSERVATISM
• INCOMPLETE OBSTRUCTION
• PREVIOUS SURGERY
• ADVANCED MALIGNANCY
• DIAGNOSTIC DOUBT - POSSIBLE ILEUS
•At operation
•Full laparotomy should be performed
•Liver should be palpated for metastases
•Colon should be inspected for synchronous tumours
Two-staged procedure
•Hartmann’s procedure
•Closure of colostomy
One-stage procedure
•Resection, on-table lavage and primary anastomosis
•Three stage procedure will involve 3 operations!
•Associated with prolonged total hospital stay
•Transverse loop colostomy can be difficult to manage
•With two-staged procedure only 60% of stomas are ever reversed
•With one-stage procedure stoma is avoided
•Anastomotic leak rate of less than 4% have been reported
•Irrespective of option total perioperative mortality is about 10%
Source: http://www.surgeryencyclopedia.com/Fi-La/Intestinal-Obstruction-Repair.html
PARALYTIC ILEUS
IDIOPATHIC SEPTICAEMIA
Metabolic Retroperitoneal irritation
Severe trauma at lumbar area Drugs
Shock Secondary GI involvement
Small intestinal pseudo-obstruction Colonic pseudo-obstruction (Ogilvie’s
syndrome, )
This condition may be primary (i.e. This may occur in an acute or a chronic
idiopathic or associated with form.
familial visceral myopathy) or secondary. presents as acute large bowel
The clinical picture consists of recurrent obstruction.
subacute obstruction. Abdominal radiographs show evidence of
The diagnosis is made by the exclusion colonic obstruction, with marked caecal
of a mechanical cause. distension being a common
Treatment consists of feature.
initial correction of any underlying disorder. AXR shows colonic obstruction with
Metoclopramide and marked caecal distension
erythromycin may be of use. Confirmation of absence mechanical
cause by colonoscopy or single contrast
water soluble barium enema or CT.
Once confirmed, treated by colonoscopic
decompression
ACUTE MESENTERIC OCCLUSION
• ACUTE ISCHEMIC OF MESENTERIC VESSEL. COMMONLY SMA
• CAUSES: AF, MURAL THROMBOSIS, ATHEROMATOUS PLAQUE FROM AORTIC
ANEURYSM AND VALAVE VEGETATION FROM ENDOCARDITIS
• FEATURES: -SUDDEN ONSET OF SEVERE ABD. PAIN IN PT WITH AF AND
ATHEROSCLEROSIS
-PERSISTENT VOMITING AND DEFECATION THEN PASSAGE OF ALTERED
BLOOD
-HYPOVOLUMIC SHOCK
• INVESTIGATIONS: - NEUTROPHIL LEUKOCYTOSIS
- ABD XRAY: ABSENCE OF GAS IN THICKENED SMALL INTESTINES
• TREATMENT: - ANTI-COAGULANT
- EMBOLECTOMY
- REVASCULARIZATION