[Acute abdominal pain of vascular origin]

Pain of vascular origin generally reflects severe intestinal involvement and lesions that are rapidly irreversible. Diagnosis is difficult and treatment is often delayed. Such involvement should be considered systematically when confronted with any atypical abdominal pain, especially if it is intense and appears abruptly, in any patient with vascular disease or having cardiac rhythm disorder. At an early stage, the contrast between the severity of pain and the lack of general and physical signs should suggest emergency CT scan followed by GI arteriography for diagnosis and deciding treatment. If such measures are impossible, laparotomy should be performed. At the stage of infarct, the presence of an unstable haemodynamic condition and peritoneal signs require emergency laparotomy without paraclinical examinations. The severity of prognosis depends on the causes, the extent of lesions, patient background and the rapidity with which treatment is initiated.