[Ultrasound diagnosis in ileus]

Unspecific clinical symptoms and negative general X-ray findings from the abdominal region have often been characteristic of early ileus stages and have caused delay in prognosis-enhancing surgery. These early stages can be more reliably identified by means of abdominal sonography. Ileus was detected by means of general abdominal sonography from three of 14 of the authors' own patients from whom negative findings had been recorded by X-ray examinations. Their ileus was eliminated by immediate surgical intervention.