Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

OBSTRUCTION OF THE SMALL INTESTINE

1964; Elsevier BV; Volume: 2; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/s0033-8389(22)02061-9

1557-8275

John L. Williams,

Airway Management and Intubation Techniques

The roentgen diagnosis of a small intestinal obstruction is not difficult if the obstruction is complete and if there is gaseous distention. If a very small amount of gas is present in the obstructed jejunum, it takes a characteristic form, indicative of dilated intestine. Since gas is not always present, the radiologist must look for the soft-tissue densities of fluid-filled intestine. They may constitute the best or the only roentgenographic evidence of an obstruction. The recognition of strangulating obstructions is still a major problem in radiography of the acute abdomen. Strangulating obstructions tend to accumulate little or no gas and the roentgen signs tend to appear late in the course of the disease. In questionable cases the use of barium sulfate by mouth is a safe and valuable procedure.