Predictive factors of mortality in severe ischaemic colitis: post-operative analysis of 101 patients

Ischaemic colitis (IC) is the most common form of bowel ischaemia and is often under-diagnosed. To report the results obtained in patients with IC who required surgical intervention in our Hospital, and to evaluate the predictive factors of mortality. The data were obtained from the Gregorio Marañon Hospital CI database. The demographic and clinical characteristics, diagnostic methods, surgical techniques employed and mortality were analysed statistically, using the chi(2) and Student t test. One-hundred and one patients with CI were operated on between 1991 and 2006. The majority of them had cardiovascular histories and 35 cases were diagnosed during their hospital stay due to another cause. The signs and the symptoms were non-specific in 40% of the cases. Total morbidity and mortality was 39.6% and 41.6% respectively. In the post-operative IC cases, the death rate increased to 68% (p