Chronic intestinal ischemia: diagnosis and therapy.

Splanchnic arteriosclerosis is common among the elderly population, but intestinal angina is distinctly a rare entity. Extensive and efficient mesenteric collateral pathways make development of intestinal angina unlikely unless at least two major vessels exhibit hemodynamically important stenoses. Herein we describe the surgical management of 17 patients with chronic intestinal ischemia. The patients most commonly had postprandial pain and lost significant weight; angiography, including lateral aortography, confirmed the diagnosis. An average of 2.5 vessels in these 17 patients were arteriosclerotically involved. These 17 patients underwent 20 major splanchnic artery reconstructions altogether (average, 1.2 vessels per patient) for relief of symptomatic intestinal ischemia. Arterial reconstructions (16 bypass procedures and 4 endarterectomies) were undertaken with either autogenous saphenous vein (10 vessels) or Dacron prosthetics (6 vessels). Revascularizations involved the superior mesenteric artery (six patients), hepatic artery (three patients), splenic artery (seven patients), and inferior mesenteric artery (four patients). Five deaths occurred after operation, two early and three late, all from myocardial infarctions. All patients who survived have been relieved of their pain, and there has been no recurrence. The average length of follow-up has been 60.9 months and repeat angiography in six patients at intervals of up to 5 years has shown no evidence of revascularization occlusion.