Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this study was to develop a novel swine model of recurrent gastrointestinal
bleeding that could potentially be utilized for the study of provocative mesenteric
angiography.
Methods Animal experiments were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.
The superior mesenteric artery was catheterized via percutaneous transfemoral access.
Via laparotomy, multiple small incisions were created in the small bowel wall of four
swine. After hemostasis was achieved, varying amounts of thrombolytics were infused
into the superior mesenteric artery via a 5 french catheter. The number of incisions
with observable rebleeding and interval until rebleeding were ascertained.
Results In a test animal, active extravasation was confirmed to be detectable on digital
subtraction angiography at a small bowel incision site. After tissue plasminogen activator
(tPA) administration into the superior mesenteric artery, rebleeding from the incisions
was visually observed in 11 of 30 small bowel incisions (37%). Provoked bleeding occurred
at a median of 6 minutes (mean: 5 minutes and 52 seconds) after completion of tPA
injection with a range of approximately 1 to 10 minutes.
Conclusion This pilot study proposes a feasible model for provocative mesenteric angiography
in swine.
Keywords gastrointestinal bleeding - angiography - provocative mesenteric angiography
