Contrast enhanced ultrasound in the diagnosis of acute mesenteric ischemia

Purpose: In acute mesenteric ischemia (AMI) an early diagnosis is mandatory. Still there is no gold standard in diagnostics that is both reliable and easy accessible. CEUS seems to be a promising tool in the early diagnosis of AMI.

Material and methods: Presentation of two cases in which the diagnosis aof AMI could be made by CEUS.

Results: Ischemic bowel is clearly detectable by CEUS as very few or no bubbles appear in the ischemic bowel wall sections compared to normaly vascularized bowel loops nearby.

Conclusion: In cases where color doppler ultrasound cannot reveal a thrombus in a major abdominal vessels CEUS is a dependable diagnostic tool to reveal ischenmia of the small bowel. It should be performed immediatly in cases supected for AMI.