short bowel syndrome

Short bowel syndrome is a condition caused by surgery that removes part of the small intestine.

 

The small bowel carries food from the stomach to the large bowel, which attaches to the rectum and anus. It plays an important role in digestion. Proteins, vitamins, minerals, salts, and important fats are absorbed through the small bowel. Removal of part of the small bowel decreases the area to absorb these nutrients.

 

Many people can tolerate removal of up to 50% to 60% of the small bowel without having problems. However, when more than this amount or a key part of small bowel is removed, symptoms often occur. These symptoms make up what is called the short bowel syndrome.

 

The main symptoms of this condition are abdominal pain, or distress, and diarrhea. Malabsorption, or poor absorption, of important nutrients may lead to weight loss, low blood counts including anemia, and vitamin deficiencies.

 

The cause of this condition is removal of too much of the small bowel. Common reasons for surgery to remove part of the small bowel include: treatment for a condition called Crohn's disease, which causes severe bowel inflammation for unknown reasons bowel bypass surgery, usually done to help people with severe obesity lose weight removal of dead bowel, which usually occurs due to poor blood supply removal of areas of small bowel damaged by radiation therapy, which is commonly used to treat cancer. The damage to the bowel is known as radiation enteritis.

People who have not had small bowel surgery are not at risk for this condition. Surgeons try to remove as little bowel as possible when doing surgery to prevent this condition.

Short bowel syndrome is suspected if the characteristic symptoms occur in a person who has had small bowel surgery. If diarrhea, malabsorption, or weight loss occurs for long periods of time, the diagnosis can usually be made. There is no single test that confirms the diagnosis.