Intestinal obstruction and ileus: role of computed tomography scan in diagnosis and management

A significant proportion of patients with intestinal obstruction will be evaluated with a CT scan of the abdomen. This study presents a group of 97 patients diagnosed with mechanical obstruction or ileus on CT scan over a 16-month period at a community based teaching hospital and follows the further management of these patients. Our study shows that 43.3 per cent of patients with mechanical obstruction, diagnosed by CT scan, eventually needed surgical treatment. On the other hand, even when CT indicates ileus, 20 per cent of these patients may still require surgical intervention.