Portomesenteric gas due to intestinal obstruction: a case report

A case of mesenteric vein gas as a nonfatal complication of intestinal obstruction is reported. A 48-year-old woman presented postoperatively signs and symptoms of acute abdomen on the eighth day following a gastric pull-up surgery due to an oesophageal carcinoma. The abdominal tomography findings revealed dilated jejunal segments and free gas in the superior mesenteric vein and end branches of the portal vein in the left hepatic lobe. The patient underwent a second laparotomy with a provisional diagnosis of intestinal ischaemia. Intraoperative gross appearance of the intestines revealed no ischaemic finding, the pathology was the dense adhesions between the jejunal segments and previous incision site. On the basis of these findings, the operation was ended with adhesiolysis. One month after the operation, the patient was well, there were no complications. As the authors, we think that the main reason for portomesenteric gas is mucosal destruction and that these case may be followed conservatively as long as intestinal ischaemia is excluded.