(May 11, 2007ORLANDO, FL)Using catheter techniques perfected in the arteries of the heart, interventional cardiologists are successfully treating chronic mesenteric ischemia, a condition akin to intestinal angina. According to a study reported at the 30th Annual Scientific Sessions of the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI), May 912, 2007, in Orlando, FL, angioplasty and stenting of clogged arteries in the abdomen successfully restored blood flow to the intestines and relieved painful symptoms in more than 90 percent of patients, without major complications.
"Chronic mesenteric ischemia is an ideal condition for treatment with nonsurgical interventions," said David E. Allie, M.D., director of cardiothoracic, vascular and endovascular surgery at the Cardiovascular Institute of the South in Lafayette, LA. "Angioplasty and stenting are simple and safe, and many times today can be done as an outpatient procedure."
Chronic mesenteric ischemia can be tricky to diagnose. Patients may suffer nausea, vomiting, or pain after eatingsymptoms often mistaken for gallbladder disease or gastroenteritis. Eventually they may develop a fear of eating and lose large amounts of weight. Surgical treatment of chronic mesenteric ischemia results in death in as many as 15 percent of patients, in part because the procedure is complexit typically takes four to eight hours to performbut also because patients are debilitated by the time the diagnosis is finally made. In about one-third of patients, the diseased artery suddenly becomes completely blocked, gangrene develops in the bowel, and infection spreads throughout the body. More than half of such patients die, even with surgery.
To evaluate the effectiveness of stenting for chronic mesenteric ischemia, Dr. Allie and his colleagues recruited 50 patients with a total of 74 areas of narrowing, or stenosis, in the superior mesenteric or celiac arteries. In most cases, the procedure w
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Contact: Kathy Boyd David
kbdavid@scai.org
717-422-1181
Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions
11-May-2007