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Inflammatory bowel disease, vascular disease, volvulus, adhesions, or abdominal trauma may necessitate extensive small-bowel resection resulting in an ultra-short distal duodenal or jejunal stump. If this distal duodenal or short jejunal stump is too short for stoma creation and bowel continuity restoration is hazardous or not possible at all, a distal duodenogastrostomy or proximal jejunogastrostomy in combination with drainage of the stomach is an option to prevent stump leakage. Although successful, this distal duodenogastrostomy has been described only in very few patients and in older records. We reintroduced this technique and describe a recent series of patients that confirms its usefulness in certain conditions. The technique of the distal duodenogastrostomy or proximal jejunogastrostomy with gastric drainage was used for the management of the difficult distal duodenum stump in five critically ill patients undergoing extensive bowel resection. Four patients with small-bowel ischemia and one patient suffering from perforating Crohn's disease and small-bowel volvulus were treated  successfully. The gastrostomies were subsequently converted to a duodenotransversostomy (in two patients) or the patients underwent small-bowel transplantation (two patients). One patient still has a jejunogastrostomy just after the duodenal-jejunal transition. In all five patients, the distal duodenogastrostomy or proximal jejunogastrostomy in combination with gastric drainage functioned well up to restoration of bowel continuity. In one patient, distal duodenogastrostomy and transabdominal gastric drainage functioned well for 5 years. No anastomotic leakage occurred. This procedure provides a feasible solution for an ultra-short bowel at emergency laparotomy. It enhances the surgical armamentarium and provides treatment options for these patients that were perhaps previously deemed unsalvageable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The short bowel syndrome (SBS) can result from a variety of conditions, including postoperative complications and malignancy. Continence-preserving operations are generally performed for either ulcerative colitis (UC) or familial polyposis (FAP). These procedures can be associated with high morbidity and the potential for future malignancy. Our aim was to determine the causes and consequences of SBS in patients undergoing these procedures. Twenty-four patients (12 men and 12 women) 18 to 64 years of age were identified with SBS after continence-preserving procedures. Eighteen had pelvic procedures, and six had continent ileostomies. All SBS patients had a proximal ostomy. Remnant length measured <60 cm in five patients, 60-120 cm in ten patients, and >120 cm in nine patients. Overall 13 patients required long-term PN. Four FAP patients with desmoid tumors died. One patient with UC underwent intestinal transplant and expired. Follow-up ranges from 6 to 192 months. Overall 14 patients had UC, nine had FAP, and one had functional disease. Eight patients with an initial diagnosis of UC had subsequent Crohn's disease necessitating further resection and pouch excision. Eight patients (five with UC, two FAP, and one with functional disease) had postoperative complications, including obstruction or mesenteric ischemia requiring resections. One UC patient developed adenocarcinoma in a continent ileostomy. Seven of the nine FAP patients required resection for desmoid tumors. Six of these underwent resection alone. Three died at 10, 11, and 13 months after SBS from liver failure and sepsis while awaiting transplant. One patient has recurrent desmoid at 30 months, another is alive and well at 48 months, and the other patient, who was not a transplant candidate, died from an unrelated cardiac operation at 23 months. A single patient underwent resection with simultaneous multivisceral transplantation. SBS can develop after continence-preserving procedures. This occurs with inflammatory bowel disease when unsuspected Crohn's disease is present or complications occur. SBS related to desmoid tumors has a poor prognosis in patients undergoing resection alone. A more aggressive approach to intestinal transplantation in these patients may be warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patients with Crohn''s disease are at high risk for recurrent disease and often undergo multiple operations. Our aims were to evaluate surgical management and outcome of patients with Crohn''s disease who develop short bowel syndrome (SBS) and to identify factors leading to this complication. We reviewed the records of 170 adult patients with SBS evaluated over a 20-year period. Thirty (18%) had Crohn''s disease. SBS was defined as an intestinal remnant less than 180 cm with associated malabsorption. There were 20 women and 10 men ranging in age from 18 to 62 years. Eighteen (60%) presented initially with ileocolonic disease, seven (23%) with colonic disease, and five (17%) with small intestinal disease. The interval from initial diagnosis to development of SBS ranged from 2 to 32 years, with 21 patients (71%) having an interval greater than 15 years. The number of resections leading to SBS varied from 2 to 12 with 24 patients (80%) having four or fewer resections. Nineteen patients (63%) had an ostomy. Small intestinal remnant length was less than 60 cm in 10 patients, 60 to 120 cm in six patients, and greater than 120 cm in 14 patients. Only one patient underwent stricturoplasty before developing SBS. Five patients were initially diagnosed as having ulcerative colitis and underwent a pouch procedure, which was subsequently resected. Twenty patients (67%) required parenteral nutrition. Three patients have undergone reversed intestinal segment to slow intestinal transit. Two patients underwent intestinal transplantation. Two patients have died: one from parenteral nutrition–related liver failure and the other after intestinal transplantation. Crohn''s disease remains a common cause of SBS. Aggressive resectional therapy, surgical complications, and errors in initial diagnosis contribute to development of SBS in these patients. Selected patients are candidates for surgical therapy for SBS. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]