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Query: UMLS:C0740577 (acute abdominal pain)
 1,982 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

A case report of subacute, reversible ischemic colitis associated with use of oral contraceptives (OCs) is reported. A 19-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital with chief complaints of abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and rectal bleeding of 2 days' duration. Past medical history and family history were noncontributory. The patient was receiving no medication other than Norinyl 2 (2 mg of norethindrone and .1 mg of mestranol), which she had been taking for 6 months. 2 days before admission the patient had taken 100 mg of dimenhydrinate and 2 ExLax tablets (90 mg of phenolphthalein) for constipation. Colonic roentgenograms revealed impaired mesenteric circulation and bowel ischemia; OC-induced ischemic bowel disease was diagnosed. Patient symptoms subsided within 96 hours of discontinuing the OC and initiating supportive therapy (including intravenous fluid infusion, nasogastric suction, analgesics, and antiemetics). When a repeat barium enema was performed, it showed resolution of the ischemia. In a short review following the case report, these drugs were indicted in causation of colitis-like syndrome: amoxicillin, ampicillin, cephazolin, chloramphenicol, chlorpropamide, clindamycin, cloxacillin, cotrimoxasole, cyclophosphamide, digitalis, ergotamine tartrate, flucytosine, fluorouracil, gold salts, laxative and cathartic abuse, mercurous chloride, methyldopa, penicillin V, and tetracycline. Ischemic bowel disease secondary to OC use is a rare but important complication because of its significant morbidity and potential mortality, and because of the widespread use of the drugs. The case report emphasizes the need to consider the differential diagnosis of acute vascular insult with bowel ischemia when acute abdominal pain progressing to bloody diarrhea occurs in young women taking OCs.
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PMID:Oral contraceptive-induced ischemic bowel disease. 48 72

A 58 year old Chinese male, one week after arriving in Canada from Hong Kong, presented with acute abdominal pain and diarrhoea which was rapidly followed by Escherichia coli infection causing septicaemia and meningitis. His past history revealed bronchial asthma for 15 years treated with steroids. At laparotomy, 7 days after the onset of symptoms, he was found to have extensive haemorrhagic infarction of the small bowel and right colon. Examination of the fibrosed mesenteric vessels revealed numerous filariform larvae of Strongyloides stercoralis, within the walls, and in all layers of bowel wall. The role of the parasite in the production of obliterative arteritis in this fatal case of haemorrhagic enteropathy is discussed. Clinical strongyloidiasis, in uncomplicated cases, varies from mild to severe with gastroenteritis, nausea, colicky abdominal pain, electrolyte imbalance and symptoms of malabsorption syndrome (MARCIAL-ROJAS, 1971). In malnourished individuals and patients with debilitating infections, either newly acquired or asymptomatic latent infection with S. stercoralis can assume severe dimensions (BROWN and PERNA, 1958; HUGHTON and HORN, 1959). Similarly, in patients on steroid (CRUZ et al., 1966; WILLIS and MWOKOLO, 1966; NEEFE et al., 1973) and immunosuppressive therapy for lymphomatous diseases or deficient in immune response (ROGERS and NELSON, 1966; RIVERA et al., 1970), systemic strongyloidiasis is often fatal. The increased frequency of auto-infection in such patients with a breached immune barrier is, however, unclear. Further complications of this infection due to severe enterocolitis result in sepsis, bacteraemia and meningitis (BROWN and PERNA, 1958; HUGHTON and HORN, 1959). This paper presents a fatal case of S. stercoralis infection which illustrates an uncommon if not unique, mechanism in its production of haemorrhagic enteropathy leading to sepsis and death.
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PMID:Fatal bowel infarction and sepsis: an unusual complication of systemic strongyloidiasis. 122 84

A review of 58 patients with malignancies (age range, 14-73 years), who required surgical consultation for acute abdominal pain in the setting of neutropenia (granulocyte count less than 1000/mm3) after chemotherapy was conducted. Ninety percent had fevers greater than 37.8 degrees C, 30% had diarrhea or melena, and 25% had diminished bowel sounds. Five of the 29 patients (17%) with localized pain had surgical intervention; 3 of 29 patients (10%) with generalized pain underwent operations (2 for x-ray findings). All eight of these surgically treated patients survived to leave the hospital. Eighteen of the 29 patients with generalized pain were believed to have a similar syndrome of diarrhea (occasionally heme positive) and diffuse abdominal tenderness (some with peritoneal signs and distension), which was termed "neutropenic enteropathy." Eleven of these 18 patients had their symptoms resolve with antibiotic therapy, aggressive fluid replacement, and a return of their granulocyte count to normal. The other seven died of pneumonia (two), unknown causes (one), and diffuse enterocolitis throughout the intestinal tract (four documented at autopsy). The overall 30-day mortality rate in this series was 34%. Several factors correlated significantly with mortality: hypotension at the onset of pain (80% mortality), bacteremia (63% mortality), and fungemia (100% mortality). Absolute leukocyte count and absolute platelet count did not correlate with mortality. This study reaffirms that patients with neutropenic enteropathy are best treated conservatively. Patients with surgically correctable disease were identified by specific focal findings on examination or x-ray.
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PMID:Abdominal pain in neutropenic cancer patients. 394 98

To understand the surgical approach to acute abdominal pain, the internist must be familiar with common presentations of most abdominal emergencies; these emergencies include acute appendicitis, acute gall bladder disease (biliary colic, acute cholecystitis, and acute pancreatitis), ischemic bowel disease and ischemic colitis, abdominal aortic aneurysm, and intestinal obstruction. Nothing compares to experience; this article reviews the salient points that deserve consideration.
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PMID:An internist's approach to acute abdominal pain. 837 23

We present the case of a patient admitted to our emergency ward with a clinical setting of acute abdominal pain and a history of cavernous lymphangioma, diagnosed in another center by exploratory lapartomy. The patient presented complete analysis including serology tests, as well as an abdominal CT scan that revealed multiple large size retroperitoneal cysts. In view of the clinical symptomatology and results of the tests, a second CT scan was carried out upon admission. As a result of the findings obtained, a second exploratory laparotomy was carried out in which intestinal resection of the perforated jejunal loop and largest cysts was performed. Pathological anatomy diagnosed an intestinal lymphoma associated with enteropathy and abdominal cysts compatible with cavernous lymphangioma. In this work we describe both pathologies, the most characteristic aspects are analyzed and the etiology and possible relation between both entities is discussed.
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PMID:Intestinal T-cell lymphoma associated with celiac disease masked by cavernous lymphangioma. 1473 10

A young adult pregnant alpaca was presented with an acute episode of abdominal pain. Hematology revealed mild anemia, neutropenia with a degenerative left shift and moderate toxic changes in neutrophils, hyperfibrinogenemia, hypoproteinemia, and hypoalbuminemia. Abdominal ultrasound showed a small intestinal segment with severely increased wall thickness and collapsed lumen. Exploratory laparotomy revealed a markedly thickened 60cm jejunal segment with reddened serosa from which a full-thickness biopsy and samples for bacterial culture were obtained. Histopathology revealed severe coccidian enteropathy with secondary bacterial enteritis. Anaerobic culture yielded Clostridium perfringens, while fecal sugar flotation yielded Eimeria macusaniensis and Eimeria punoensis. The alpaca was treated with broad-spectrum antimicrobial drugs, sulfadimethoxine, and anti-inflammatory drugs. The alpaca made a gradual recovery and had a term pregnancy. This communication demonstrates the potential pathogenicity of E. macusaniensis in adult alpacas. Coccidian enteropathy should be considered in adult alpacas with gastrointestinal signs including acute abdominal pain and hypoproteinemia.
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PMID:Diagnosis and treatment of Eimeria macusaniensis in an adult alpaca with signs of colic. 1803 57

Peritonitis is a set of symptoms of varying etiology usually with an accompanying infection, systemic and local changes within the peritoneal cavity Colonic diseases, especially colon perforation, are one of the most common causes of peritonitis. The course of the disease may be turbulent due to sudden perforation. In case of limited peritonitis the disease is not as acute as the perforation hole is small and it can be sealed by the omentum and internal organs. Abdominal pain is usually located around the source of infection and is less severe. A 38-year-old patient at 34 weeks gestation was hospitalized in the obstetric-gynecological ward of the Health Care Center with a diagnosis of preterm delivery urinary infection and renal colic. Due to increasing peritoneal symptoms and deteriorating general condition of the patient, a decision to perform immediately exploratory laparotomy combined with the Cesarean section was made. The surgeon indicated a place in the left mesogastrium that could correspond with a drained interintestinal abscess and also found a large amount of fibrin in the lower floor of the peritoneal cavity The initial point of the abscess remained unknown and the patient received total parenteral nutrition for 10 days. On 5 postoperative day the drain was removed from the peritoneal cavity and since day 10 patient health was steadily improving. Bacteriological cultures revealed abundant growth of E. coli that showed sensitivity to the used antibiotics. On 22 postoperative day the patient and her child were discharged home in good condition. Five months later the patient was admitted to the surgical ward with acute abdominal pain with the diagnosis of an abscess in her left mesogastric and subgastric area, perforation of sigmoid diverticulum and fecal fistula. Our case illustrates great difficulties in diagnosing diseases of the abdominal cavity during pregnancy because causes and symptoms may be typical of this condition, as well as of unrelated diseases, including: kidney problems, appendicitis, cholecystitis and bowel disease. Examination of the pregnant patient presents a challenge and the symptoms are uncharacteristic. Tension of the abdominal wall, as well as the muscles of the digestive and urinary tract are reduced and the topography of the internal organs changes during pregnancy. The interpretation of laboratory tests becomes more difficult. In our case, the initial local peritonitis, caused by microperforation of the diverticulum, ran a latent course and was masked by both pregnancy and renal colic symptoms, consequently leading to diffuse peritonitis. The presented case demonstrates the importance of the problem and forces obstetricians to be more vigilant in determining the diagnosis and decision-making, because of its meaning for the health and even the life of the patient and her child.
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PMID:[Complicated colonic diverticulitis at 34 weeks gestation]. 2348 99