ENTEROCLYSIS IN THE EVALUATION OF OBSCURE GASTROINTESTINAL-BLEEDING

OBJECTIVE. The diagnostic yield of enteroclysis was retrospectively ev aluated for patients with obscure bleeding from the gastrointestinal t ract. MATERIALS AND METHODS. A total of 128 patients with obscure gast rointestinal bleeding were referred to our department for enteroclysis between 1988 and 1993. The original radiologic reports were reviewed to determine the radiographic findings in these patients. The radiogra phic findings then were correlated with medical, surgical, and patholo gic findings. RESULTS. Thirty-two patients had lesions found at entero clysis. Nineteen of those patients had confirmation of the radiographi c diagnosis, primarily by pathologic examination of the surgical speci men. Five other patients were found at surgery to have had false-posit ive diagnoses at enteroclysis. Eight patients ceased to bleed without pathologic corroboration, but their clinical presentation and course s upported the radiographic diagnosis. Thus, 27 (21%) of the 128 patient s had confirmed or highly probable lesions seen at enteroclysis as the cause of obscure gastrointestinal bleeding. Seventeen patients (13%) had tumors involving the small bower, and three (2%) had arteriovenous malformations in the jejunum. CONCLUSION. This study corroborates ear lier reports that enteroclysis is a useful diagnostic test for examini ng the small intestine in patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleed ing.