title: Sclerosing Mesenteritis: Diverse clinical presentations and dissimilar treatment options. A case series and review of the literature.
abstract: Sclerosing mesenteritis (SM) is a rare pathological condition affecting the mesentery. It is a benign, non-specific inflammation of the adipose tissue of the mesentery of the small intestine and colon. It is characterized by a variable amount of chronic fibrosis. Its etiology is unknown, the pathogenesis is obscure, while the pathological characteristics of the disease are unspecific. The initial clinical presentation varies from typically asymptomatic to that of an acute abdomen. The diagnosis is suggested by computed tomography but is usually confirmed by surgical biopsies. Treatment is largely empirical; it is decided upon on the basis of the clinical condition of the patient, and usually a few specific drugs are used. Surgical resection is sometimes attempted for definitive therapy, although the surgical approach is often limited. We will present five cases of SM as well as a review of the available literature in order to state and compare a variety of clinical presentations, diverse possible etiologies and dissimilar treatment options.
authors.affiliation: First Department of General Surgery, 417 NIMTS, Veterans Hospital of Athens, 10-12 Monis Petraki, 11521, Athens, Greece. falidase@otenet.gr.
authors.forename: Konstantinos
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Vlachos
authors.forename: Fotis
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Archontovasilis
authors.forename: Evangelos
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Falidas
authors.forename: Stavros
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mathioulakis
authors.forename: Stefanos
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Konstandoudakis
authors.forename: Constantinos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Villias