Intra-operative Enteroscopy in the Management of Bleeding Small Bowel Lesions

This paper reviews the use of intra-operative enteroscopy at St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne between 1982 and 1990 in the management of presumed small bowel bleeding. Intra-operative enteroscopy was found to be a moderately technically demanding procedure. The diagnostic yield in this small series of nine patients was 100%. When solitary small bowel lesions are identified, resultant directed therapy should prevent further bleeding. When multiple widespread angiodysplastic lesions are identified as occurred in three cases, the bleeding is difficult to cure.