title: Ischemic and injured bowel evaluation by Fluorescence imaging.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although fluorescence has been proposed for estimation of bowel perfusion decades ago it is still not widely used. In emergency situations like mesenteric ischemia, fluorescence might give objective criteria to evaluate the perfusion and guide the decisions of surgeons.
  
  
  METHODS
  The use of near-inrafrared angiography by PinPoint (Novadaq) in a serial of four emergency situations of acute mesenteric ischemia has been evaluated in a university hospital setting.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The use of the near-infrared tool is in emergency situations easy to handle and little time-consuming. The angiography showed clearly the perfusion in regions that were not estimated as recoverable by the surgeons. In one of the cases a significant amount of bowel could be spared by use of the system.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the assessment of the perfusion with the applied system is comprehensible, it would be desirable to evaluate a threshold level in order to further objectify it. While the surgeons who used the tool were subjectively assured by the expressiveness it would need a randomized and maybe experimental setting to evaluate objectively the amount of spared bowel length.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University Medical Center Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nowak
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University Medical Center Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sandra-Petrescu
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University Medical Center Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Post
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University Medical Center Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Horisberger
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005451:Fluorescein Angiography / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007259:Infrared Rays; D007422:Intestines / Q000293:injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D065666:Mesenteric Ischemia / Q000601:surgery*; D008875:Middle Aged; D055420:Perfusion Imaging / Q000379:methods*
keywords: fluorescence; indocyanine green; mesenteric ischemia; small bowel ischemia