Obscure gastrointestinal bleeding: a complication of radiation enteritis diagnosed by wireless capsule endoscopy.
Obscure gastrointestinal bleeding is a common disorder and may account for as many as 5% of all gastrointestinal hemorrhages. It is often caused by lesions in the small intestine, which were very complicated to examine prior to the advent of wireless capsule endoscopy. Here we present the case of a 31-year-old woman with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding as a complication of radiation enteritis, which was diagnosed only after she underwent an examination with wireless capsule endoscopy. This technique has proven to be far superior to other radiographic and endoscopic methods in diagnosing obscure gastrointestinal bleeding and pathologies of the small intestine in general.
Martínez Ares
D
D
Division of Gastroenterology. Complejo Hospitalario Universitario Juan Canalejo. A Coruña, Spain. dmartinez@sepd.es
González Conde
B
B
Souto Ruzo
J
J
Vázquez Millán
M A
MA
Estévez Prieto
E
E
Alonso Aguirre
P
P
Vázquez Iglesias
J L
JL
D000328:Adult; D016099:Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal; D004751:Enteritis / Q000150:complications* / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006471:Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D011832:Radiation Injuries / Q000150:complications*