GASTRODUODENAL PNEUMATOSIS - ENDOSCOPIC AND HISTOLOGICAL-FINDINGS

The case described herein underscores the importance of early endoscop y when intramural gastric air is detected by radiography. Although gas tric pneumatosis is an uncommon finding, when it is detected, clinicia ns must be aggressive in determining the underlying etiology so that a ppropriate interventions are initiated in a timely manner. In this cas e, the gross endoscopic appearance of the mucosa and the unique histol ogical findings mere critical in establishing the correct diagnosis. A lthough gastric pneumatosis has been found in surgically resected spec imens, the first description of histological findings associated with gastric pneumatosis in endoscopically obtained biopsies is presented i n this report. This report also documents how rapidly both endoscopic and histological abnormalities, associated with this entity, can resol ve.