Bmc Gastroenterol
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Review Case Reports
Fibromuscular dysplasia of mesenteric arteries: a rare cause of multiple bowel resections-a case report and literature review.
Fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD) is a type of unexplained nonatherosclerotic vascular disease that usually involves the renal and internal carotid arteries and rarely involves the mesenteric artery. Mesenteric artery FMD is difficult to distinguish from Crohn's disease (CD) and Behcet's disease (BD) solely based on symptoms. Patients with mesenteric artery FMD can present with an acute abdomen, but case reports of patients who have a long medical history and undergo multiple bowel resections are extremely rare. ⋯ Patients with mesenteric artery FMD can present with an acute abdomen. In addition, the symptoms and endoscopic manifestations of mesenteric artery FMD may appear similar to CD and BD. Hence, it is difficult to make a clear clinical diagnosis and proceed with treatment. Mesenteric artery FMD often requires surgical pathology to confirm its diagnosis. For patients who suffer from this disorder, surgery may be the best choice to improve the patient's quality of life.