Computed tomography angiography in patients with active gastrointestinal bleeding

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Gastroenterology
• Emergency Medicine

Background:

• Gastrointestinal bleeding is a frequent medical emergency with high morbidity and mortality.
• Endoscopy is the primary diagnostic tool but has limitations in massive hemorrhage and emergency settings.
• Alternative methods like scintigraphy, capsule endoscopy, and digital angiography have significant drawbacks in acute scenarios.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate computed tomography angiography (CTA) as a diagnostic tool for acute gastrointestinal bleeding.
• To propose a CTA protocol for assessing patients with gastrointestinal bleeding.

Main Methods:

• Critical literature review.
• Analysis of authors' clinical experience.
• Development of a proposed CTA protocol.

Main Results:

• Computed tomography angiography (CTA) is fast, widely available, and minimally invasive.
• CTA demonstrates high accuracy in determining the location and cause of gastrointestinal bleeding.
• CTA is emerging as a promising method in the diagnostic algorithm for gastrointestinal bleeding.

Conclusions:

• Computed tomography angiography (CTA) is a valuable and accurate tool for diagnosing gastrointestinal bleeding in emergency situations.
• The proposed CTA protocol can aid clinicians in effectively assessing patients with gastrointestinal bleeding.
• CTA offers advantages over traditional methods in terms of speed, availability, and invasiveness.