[Importance of the terminal portion of the ileum in digestive compensation after extensive intestinal resections]

The long-term results of extensive intestinal resections with the removal of various organs of the ileocecal angle, carried out for acute intestinal ileus and malignant tumors, were studied in 88 patients followed up for 1 to 15 years. The experiments were carried out on 42 dogs observed within 3 years. On the grounds of clinico-experimental data it has been found that the terminal portion of the ileum about 25 cm long constitutes a "bioenergetic zone", playing an important part in the digestion, and at extensive intestinal resections the removal of this portion should be strictly justified. The caecum with the Bauhin's valve should be considered as another important zone of the ileocecal angle.