Mesenteric ischemia after coronary artery bypass grafting: should local continuous intra-arterial perfusion with papaverine be regarded as a treatment?

Mesenteric ischemia after cardiac surgery is rare but dramatic. We present a patient who had acute mesenteric ischemia following low cardiac output af ter coronary artery bypass grafting. Our patient was successfully treated w ith continuous intra-arterial perfusion with papaverine. We think that sele ctive angiography must be performed as early as mesenteric ischemia is susp ected, to get earlier diagnosis and treatment of an ischemic patient. (C) 1 999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.