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Updated: Aug 16, 2026

Functional Assessment of Intestinal Motility and Gut Wall Inflammation in Rodents: Analyses in a Standardized Model of Intestinal Manipulation
Published on: September 11, 2012
Whole bowel irrigation for toxic ingestions
Insights
Whole bowel irrigation effectively treated eight children who ingested toxic substances, including batteries and poisons. This gastrointestinal decontamination method showed promise, warranting further investigation for poisoning cases.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Toxicology
- Gastroenterology
- Emergency Medicine
Background:
- Ingestion of toxic substances poses a significant risk to children.
- Gastrointestinal decontamination is a crucial step in managing poisoning cases.
- Whole bowel irrigation (WBI) is a method to flush the gastrointestinal tract.
Abstract:
Eight children aged eleven months to sixteen years who ingested toxic substances were treated with whole bowel irrigation. This procedure involves the rapid infusion of fluids per nasogastric tube in order to flush the toxic substance out from the gastrointestinal tract thereby preventing its absorption into the bloodstream. The infusion is terminated when the rectal effluent takes on the characteristics of the infusate. The toxic substances included miniature disc batteries, iron, tricyclic antidepressant and paraquat. No significant changes in serum sodium, serum potassium or hematocrit were observed. Whole bowel irrigation was felt to be efficacious in this series. It requires additional study as a therapeutic approach to the patient who has ingested a toxic substance.
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