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Essentials of Diagnosis
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Severe postprandial abdominal pain
Weight loss with a "fear of eating"
Acute mesenteric ischemia: severe abdominal pain yet minimal findings on physical examination
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General Considerations
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Differential Diagnosis
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Contrast-enhanced CT is accurate at determining the presence of ischemic intestine
CT angiography or magnetic resonance angiography can demonstrate narrowing of proximal visceral vessels in patients with acute or chronic intestinal ischemia
Angiography shows typical "pruned tree" appearance of distal visceral vascular bed in acute intestinal ischemia from a nonocclusive low flow state
Ultrasonography of the mesenteric vessels may show proximal obstructing lesions
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Diagnostic Procedures
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