Abstract
The present paper describes a case of acute inferior mesenteric artery occulussive disease. A 79-year-old female was admitted to the hospital because of abdominal pain, tarry stool, and vomiting. On admission the patient was in shock and had a distended and hard abdomen. Abdominal simple X-ray films showed a remarkable gaseous shadow in the small and large intestine. Intestinal obstruction was suspected and emergency laparotomy was performed. It was found that intestinal necrosis presented in a region of inferior mesenteric artery and the inferior mesenteric artery was pulseless. The patient was diagnosed as acute inferior mesenteric artery occulussive disease. Left hemicolectomy and colostomy were conducted. Postoperative course was uneventful. Including this case, 13 have been reported in the Japanese literature so far. All 13 cases had a poor prognosis, in that the importance of early deiagnosis and early treatment should be emphasized.
