title: Vomiting and diarrhea in a woman with systemic lupus erythematosus.
abstract: Lupus mesenteric enteritis is an uncommon condition in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients with acute abdominal pain. We describe a 28-year-old woman with a 3-day history of watery diarrhea and intermittent vomiting. Abdominal ultrasonography revealed thickening of the intestinal wall and edema with the lumen filled with fluid in this patient with nonspecific symptoms. These ultrasonographic findings led the physician to perform an abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan, which revealed typical findings of lupus mesenteric enteritis: intestinal wall thickening with target signs and prominent engorgement of mesenteric vessels with a palisade pattern. After high dose methylprednisolone (1 g/day intravenously) was administered for 3 days, the patient's symptoms markedly improved. Additionally, resolution of the mural thickening was observed within 1 week by abdominal ultrasound examinations. Our experience indicated that abdominal ultrasonography can be important in the correct diagnosis of lupus mesenteric vasculitis (LMV).
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Taipei Municipal Gan-Dau Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Wei-Chih
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Liao
authors.forename: Wei-Hsin
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Taipei Municipal Gan-Dau Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Wei-Hsin
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Yaun
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Chien-Wei
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Su
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC. Electronic address: mchou@vghtpe.gov.tw.
authors.forename: Ming-Chih
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Han-Chieh
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Fa-Yauh
authors.initials: FY
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000150:complications*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014463:Ultrasonography; D014657:Vasculitis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology*; D014839:Vomiting / Q000209:etiology
keywords: abdominal computer tomography; abdominal sonography; acute abdomen; lupus mesenteric vasculitis; systemic lupus erythematosus