Ischemic intestinal complications after aortic reconstructive surgery

The cases of bowel ischemia following aortoiliac reconstructive surgery during a 5-year period were analyzed. The incidence of the complication was 1.5%. Two of the six patients had ischemia of both small and large bowel. The various secondary operations are described. Three of the patients died. A characteristic and consistent finding was profound thrombocytopenia, which was significantly more pronounced than in a control series. The pathogenesis is multifactorial.