Emerg Radiol (2006) 13:151-154.
Sandrasegaran K, Rajesh A, Maglinte DD.
Many causes of acute abdomen are diagnosed on computed tomography (CT). We present two cases of eosinophilic gastroenteritis that showed mural thickening of the stomach, duodenum, and/or proximal jejunum on CT. The correct diagnosis was made by checking the eosinophil count, and, in one case, unnecessary surgery was avoided.
Computed tomography (CT) of the abdomen and pelvis is now a well-established technique in helping emergency room clinicians decide on the etiology of acute abdominal pain. The value of CT in detecting conditions that usually require surgery, such as appendicitis and cholecystitis, and those that commonly respond to conservative management, such as epiploic appendagitis and pancreatitis, has been well reported. With the advent of multichannel CT, more attention is paid to small bowel diseases, such as mesenteric ischemia and intussusception. We recently saw two cases of eosinophilic gastroenteritis (EGE), a rare cause of abdominal pain, and presented the clinical and radiological findings. Awareness of this diagnosis by radiologists interpreting abdominal CT in the emergent setting and correlation with laboratory findings may obviate furthur diagnostic imaging or unnecessary surgery.