Gastrointestinal complications in critically ill patients: the intensivists' overview

The critical care environment may be characterized by invasive monitoring, vasoactive drugs, and major interventions which may have adverse effects on gastrointestinal function. Furthermore, conditions such as heart failure or sepsis may compromise oxygen delivery to gastrointestinal organs. Life threatening illness from a variety of causes may produce endoscopically evident gastritis or ulceration in up to 100% of patients, and clinically evident bleeding in 20%. Clinical studies suggest that antacids or H2 receptor blockers may reduce the frequency of this complication. Other conditions are associated with a spectrum of hepatic dysfunction ranging from the cholestatic jaundice of reactive hepatopathy during sepsis to centrilobular necrosis and hepatitis of shock liver. Additionally, many drugs used in the critical care setting may adversely affect mesenteric oxygen delivery and result in ischemia or infarction of the bowel. An increased awareness and understanding of these and other gastrointestinal complications in critically ill patients will, it is hoped, lead to earlier detection and better therapy than is now available.