Synonyms
Acute large bowel ischemia; Colon ischemia; Lower gastrointestinal ischemia
Definition
Ischemic colitis or lower gastrointestinal ischemia, for the first time described by Boley et al. in 1963, is a vascular condition of the lower gastrointestinal tract, in which the colon is injured due to an inadequate blood supply. The extent of damage of the colon will depend on the duration and cause of the ischemic injury, the involved blood vessel type and its localization as well as the degree of collateral blood supply. The insufficient blood supply induces an inflammation of the colon, evolving from mucosal damage to full-thickness or transmural necrosis.
The vascular supply of the colon consists of three arteries, namely, the superior mesenteric artery, distributing the ascending and the proximal two thirds of the transverse colon, the inferior mesenteric artery, nourishing the distal part of the transverse colon with the splenic flexure, descending colon and sigmoid, and the...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References and Further Reading
Brandt, L. J., & Boley, S. J. (2000). AGA technical review on intestinal ischemia. American Gastrointestinal Association. Gastroenterology, 118, 954–968.
Fenoglio-Preiser, C. M., Noffsinger, A. E., Stemmermann, G. N., Lantz, P. E., & Isaacson, P. G. (2008). Gastrointestinal pathology. An atlas and text (3rd ed.). Philadelphia: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.
Georgescu, E. F., Carstea, D., Dumitrescu, D., Teodorescu, R., & Carstea, A. (2012). Ischemic colitis and large bowel infarction: A case report. World Journal of Gastroenterology: WJG, 18, 5640–5644.
Odze, R. D., & Goldblum, J. R. (2009). Surgical pathology of the GI tract, liver, biliary tract, and pancreas (2nd ed.). Philadelphia: Saunders/Elsevier.
Theodoropoulou, A., & Koutroubakis, I. E. (2008). Ischemic colitis: clinical practice in diagnosis and treatment. World Journal of Gastroenterology, 14(48), 7302–8.
Vollmar, B., & Menger, M. D. (2011). Intestinal ischemia/reperfusion: Microcirculatory pathology and functional consequences. Langenbeck’s Archives of Surgery/Deutsche Gesellschaft Fur Chirurgie, 396, 13–29.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this entry
Cite this entry
Driessen, A. (2017). Ischemic Colitis. In: Carneiro, F., Chaves, P., Ensari, A. (eds) Pathology of the Gastrointestinal Tract. Encyclopedia of Pathology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40560-5_1441
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40560-5_1441
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-40559-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-40560-5
eBook Packages: MedicineReference Module Medicine