Small bowel enema use in an Asian population: our eleven years of local experience

To retrospectively analyse the outcome of patients who underwent investigation by small bowel enema in a local centre.

Case series.

Regional hospital, Hong Kong.

All patients referred for small bowel enema in a local hospital from 1 January 1999 to 31 December 2009 were identified; respective findings from imaging and clinical records were reviewed.

A total of 341 patients were referred for small bowel enema, of whom 289 successfully completed the examination. There were 211 patients whose small bowel enema findings were considered normal and 78 were regarded as abnormal. The sensitivity of this investigation was 73% and its specificity was 91%. The respective positive and negative predictive values were 66% and 93%.

The selection of patients by clinicians with specific indications for small bowel enema is essential for making effective use of small bowel enema as an investigative tool.