The efficacy of octreotide therapy in chronic bleeding due to vascular abnormalities of the gastrointestinal tract.
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BACKGROUND: The treatment of angiodysplasia and watermelon stomach, vascular abnormalities implicated in gastrointestinal bleeding of obscure origin, is a major clinical problem. AIM: To determine the efficacy of octreotide in patients with long-standing gastrointestinal bleeding due to acquired angiodysplasia and watermelon stomach, resistant to previous treatments and not suitable for surgery because of old age and/or concomitant disorders. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We treated 17 patients (seven had isolated angiodysplasia, seven had multiple upper and lower gastrointestinal angiodysplasia, and three had watermelon stomach) with octreotide (0. 1 mg subcutaneous t.d.s. for 6 months). Six of the patients had liver cirrhosis, one had Glanzmann-type platelet derangement, two had cardiovascular diseases and one had chronic uraemia. RESULTS: Octreotide treatment stopped bleeding in 10 patients. A transient improvement was observed in four, who needed subsequent cyclical retreatment to correct low haemoglobin levels. No effect was observed in three, probably due to the severity of the concomitant disorders. CONCLUSIONS: Octreotide is a safe drug that may be useful to control the recurrent gastrointestinal bleeding due to acquired angiodysplasia and watermelon stomach, especially in patients who are not candidates for surgery due to old age and/or concomitant disorders. (+info)
Diffuse angiodysplasia of the upper gastrointestinal tract in a patient with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy.
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A 64-year-old woman with a known history of hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy presented with severe anemia of unknown origin. She had also suffered from repeated episodes of upper gastrointestinal bleeding for the previous 3 years. Despite bone marrow examination and panendoscopic and angiographic studies, the origin of anemia remained undefined until a small bleeding site was found during a duodenoscopic examination. The lesion proved to be angiodysplasia. This case report is interesting in that angiodysplasia elicited gastrointestinal bleeding and was the cause of anemia. In the international literature, there are very few reported cases of bleeding from gastrointestinal angiodysplasia in association with subvalvular aortic obstruction. (+info)
Skeletal angiomatosis in association with gastro-intestinal angiodysplasia and paraproteinemia: a case report.
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Skeletal-extraskeletal angiomatosis is defined as a benign vascular proliferation involving the medullary cavity of bone and at least one other type of tissue. It has also been known as cystic angiomatosis in which multiple cystic lesions are scattered diffusely throughout the skeleton often with similar angiomatous changes in other tissues, usually the spleen. A case of skeletal angiomatosis in association with gastro-intestinal angiodysplasia and paraproteinemia is reported. (+info)
Rate and predictive factors of rebleeding with obscure-overt gastrointestinal bleeding.
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BACKGROUND/AIMS: Little information is available on the rate and predictive factors of rebleeding of unknown cause, which is very important in deciding further investigations on obscure-overt gastrointestinal bleeding. The aim of this study was to evaluate the rebleeding rate and related factors in obscure-overt gastrointestinal bleeding patients who revealed normal gastroscopic and colonoscopic findings. METHODS: A total of 69 patients with negative first-line gastroscopy and colonoscopy were enrolled in this study as obscure-overt gastrointestinal bleeding cases. The relationships between rebleeding and clinical characteristics were analyzed retrospectively. RESULTS: The causes of obscure-overt gastrointestinal bleeding were confirmed in 30 cases among the 69 cases. Small bowel tumors (14 cases) were the most common cause, followed by vascular lesions (6 cases). The mean follow-up period was 28 months and rebleeding was noticed in 19 patients (27.5%). Among these rebleeding patients, 14 cases (73.7%) occurred within 6 months. The past experience of previous bleeding was significantly related with rebleeding (p=0.0009). CONCLUSIONS: Close observation and detailed investigations are needed for obscure-overt gastrointestinal bleeding patients with bleeding history, especially during 6 months follow-up. (+info)
Persistent anemia in otherwise asymptomatic severe aortic stenosis: a possible indication for valve replacement?
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BACKGROUND: The indication for aortic valve replacement in patients with significant aortic stenosis is symptomatology. Aortic stenosis may be associated with bleeding from colonic angiodysplasia, resulting in anemia. Persistent anemia in such patients, despite lack of an identifiable source of bleeding, is not considered an indication for valve replacement. OBJECTIVES: To report our experience with two elderly female patients who suffered from severe asymptomatic aortic stenosis, low levels of large von Willebrand factor multimer (10% and 5% respectively) and persistent anemia requiring multiple blood transfusions. METHODS: Both patients underwent an intensive work-up, but a source of bleeding could not be identified. Aortic valve replacement was performed in both patients. RESULTS: Aortic valve replacement abolished the need for further blood transfusions during a follow-up period of 20 months with normalization of the vWF multimer level (20% and 30% respectively). CONCLUSION: We suggest that aortic valve replacement be considered in selected patients with severe, otherwise asymptomatic aortic stenosis, who suffer from persistent anemia requiring multiple blood transfusions, lack an identifiable source of bleeding and have low levels of large vWF multimers. (+info)
Myelofibrosis and angiodysplasia of the colon: another manifestation of portal hypertension and massive splenomegaly?
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Bleeding owing to portal hypertensive colopathy, a form of large bowel angiodysplasia, as a cause of increased blood transfusion requirement is described in a 74 year old man with idiopathic myelofibrosis. The proposed mechanism and the potential therapeutic options for this rare complication of myelofibrosis are discussed. (+info)
Infective endocarditis from Enterococcus faecalis complicating colonoscopy in Heyde's syndrome.
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A case of infective endocarditis from Enterococcus faecalis after colonoscopy in a patient with aortic stenoinsufficiency and bleeding intestinal angiodysplasia (Heyde's syndrome) is reported.A 77 year old man with aortic stenoinsufficiency presented with enterorrhagia and underwent a colonoscopy, which showed normal findings. Fifteen days later he developed a moderate degree of fever. Blood cultures were positive for E faecalis. An echocardiogram showed aortic valve vegetations, and infective endocarditis was diagnosed and successfully treated by antibiotics. Some months later, intestinal bleeding recurred and intestinal resection was performed. Histopathology showed angiodysplasia. In patients with Heyde's syndrome antibiotic prophylaxis should be considered before colonoscopy. (+info)
Successful colectomy for the treatment of repetitive bleeding from colonic angiodysplasia in a patient with Heyde syndrome.
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A 64-year-old man with repetitive gastrointestinal bleeding was admitted to our hospital. Colonic artery angiography revealed angiodysplasia as the bleeding site, and echocardiography showed aortic valve stenosis. A decrease in the high molecular weight von Willebrand factor multimers, which are known to play an important role in hemostasis, was observed, and Heyde syndrome was diagnosed. We selected colectomy instead of aortic valve replacement because the patient had undergone two open heart surgeries. Following colectomy, the patient showed a good clinical course without recurrent gastrointestinal bleeding. Colectomy might serve as a therapeutic option for Heyde syndrome after the precise site of angiodysplasia is detected by angiography. (+info)