CT proves clinical worth in bowel obstruction cases

Two and a half years worth of data suggest that CT is the most accurate, cost-effective imaging modality for diagnosing the causes of large bowel obstruction, according to investigators in the U.K.

Principal researcher Dr. Sathi Sukumar, a consultant radiologist at the University Hospital of South Manchester, and colleagues retrospectively reviewed 2400 CT reports on inpatient cases of suspected large bowel obstruction, large bowel dilatation, or pseudo-obstruction spanning 30 months of clinical practice. They identified 42 on whom clinical, endoscopic, and surgical follow-up data were available. The investigators found that CT was highly sensitive and specific in identifying the causes of dilated large bowel loops in these patients. They released preliminary findings at the 2008 American Roentgen Ray Society meeting.