Definition
A circulatory disorder of the intestine is also known as “Angina abdominalis” and describes the condition of reduced blood supply and the resulting lack of oxygen in the intestine. Similar to “angina pectoris”, which describes the same condition of the heart and is a symptom of a heart attack, a reduced supply of oxygen to the intestine can lead to an “intestinal infarction” if the lack of oxygen is prolonged. In the worst case, the undersupplied tissue dies and cannot regenerate completely.
The reason for an undersupply of oxygen (ischemia) of the intestine is usually a vascular disease that originates from the vessel wall. This vascular disease causes the diameter of the vessel to be reduced, thus decreasing the amount of blood that can reach the organ in the supply area. This type of reduced supply is usually a chronic, long-term process.
The vessel can also be closed by a blood clot (thrombus), which is usually formed in other organs. This is when the much more acute picture of intestinal ischemia, the intestinal infarction, develops. Although very rare, this is life-threatening.
Causes for circulatory disorders in the intestine
As already indicated, a circulatory disorder of the intestine can be caused or favored by various factors. On the one hand, the slowly progressing vascular disease plays a decisive role in a high percentage of cases. In this form of circulatory disorder of the intestine, a type of calcification develops on the vascular walls of the arteries supplying the intestine, which becomes increasingly robust.
It causes the vessel to lose elasticity and its diameter to decrease. The disease responsible for this is called “atherosclerosis”. It is the most common cause of a heart attack among coronary arteries.
The calcification of the vessel walls is caused by various mechanisms and there are several risk factors that favour the development of the disease. Smoking, high blood pressure, overweight (obesity), elevated blood lipids and diabetes mellitus are among the best-known of these risk factors. One risk factor for atherosclerosis that cannot be influenced is increasing age.
The other risk factors can, however, be influenced by lifestyle or medication. A circulatory disorder of the intestine can be caused not only by artherosclerosis but also by an occlusion of the vessel (embolism). The most common reason for sudden vascular occlusion is blood clots.
These usually form in other organs and are carried to the intestine via the bloodstream. A frequent site of origin is the left atrium. From here, the clot is washed through the large abdominal artery to the intestine and since the vessels become smaller and smaller here, the clot can easily block a vessel.
The areas behind it are no longer supplied with sufficient blood and oxygen. Causes for the formation of such a clot include cardiac arrhythmia. In addition to blood clots, the obstruction of an intestinal vessel can also be caused by pieces of tissue (for example, tumor tissue) or air.
A further but much rarer cause of reduced intestinal blood flow can also be vascular inflammation (vasculitis). This inflammatory disease is based on autoimmune processes. The antibodies formed by the body’s immune system are then directed against the body’s own structures, in this case against the vessel wall
