Endovascular management of chronic mesenteric ischemia

Abstract

The main clinical symptoms of chronic mesenteric ischemia (CMI) are postprandial abdominal pain, leading to fear of food and hence weight loss. It may be associated with nausea/vomiting or constipation or diarrhoea. The clinical picture unfortunately is seldom clear and in many cases there is a significant delay in diagnosis. The most common cause of CMI is atherosclerosis, and accordingly the main risk factors are smoking, hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidaemia. Contrary to most manifestations of atherosclerosis, there is a predominance in women. There are other causes of CMI besides atherosclerosis that physicians should be aware of and one of those is described in case 2.