misoprostol and Enteritis

Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAID) cause inflammation of the small intestine in 60 to 70% of patients receiving these drugs for more than 6 months. The importance of the inflammation lies in the associated complications of blood and protein loss and in the occasional development of unique small intestinal strictures requiring surgery. The pathogenesis of the inflammation is unknown. However, increased intestinal mucosal permeability due to NSAID appears to be a prerequisite; increased permeability allows exposure of the mucosa to lumenal toxins, which results in neutrophil chemotaxis and, hence, inflammation. In a study assessing the possible protective effect of misoprostol on indomethacin-induced increased small intestinal permeability, 12 volunteers underwent combined absorption/permeability tests prior to and following administration of misoprostol and/or indomethacin. Indomethacin increased intestinal permeability significantly as assessed by 51Cr-EDTA/L-rhamnose urine excretion ratio, and concomitant administration of misoprostol produced a significant protective effect. These results conform to the suggestion that NSAID-induced changes in intestinal permeability may be due to an imbalance between mucosal prostaglandins and leukotrienes. Longterm studies of the coadministration of misoprostol with NSAID are indicated to assess whether this agent reduces the severity of NSAID enteropathy.

Topics: Alprostadil; Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal; Anti-Ulcer Agents; Arthritis, Rheumatoid; Enteritis; Humans; Misoprostol; Osteoarthritis

The differential diagnosis for ulcerating small bowel strictures is extensive and includes exposure to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), Crohn's disease, infections, gastrointestinal lymphoma and vasculopathy. It also encompasses the exceptionally rare and poorly understood diagnosis of cryptogenic multifocal ulcerative stenosing enterocolitis (CMUSE), often a diagnosis of exclusion and considerable difficulty. We present a case of persistent proximal jejunal ulcerating stenoses in a 75-year-old Caucasian man, which continued despite cessation of NSAIDs. After extensive clinical, radiographic, laboratory and ultimately surgical pathological appraisal-as well as failure to improve with both misoprostol and budesonide-he was diagnosed with CMUSE and managed with limited small bowel resection. In the presentation of this case, we aim to underscore the diagnostic challenges that clinicians face in differentiating CMUSE from other more common diagnoses, particularly NSAIDs-induced enteropathy.

Topics: Abdominal Pain; Aged; Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal; Anti-Ulcer Agents; Constriction, Pathologic; Diagnosis, Differential; Enteritis; Humans; Intestinal Obstruction; Intestine, Small; Male; Misoprostol; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; Ulcer

Cytotoxic effects of ionizing radiation on gastrointestinal epithelium may be mediated by oxygen free radicals. Therapeutic intervention directed toward oxidant scavenging and increasing tissue oxygen tension may provide a novel approach to management. We investigated the effects of a nonenzymatic oxygen radical scavenger (vitamin E) and an exogenous PGE1 analog known to increase mucosal blood flow (misoprostol) on acute radiation enteritis. Rats were pretreated with: (1) vitamin E, (2) misoprostol, or (3) a combination of both agents prior to 10 Gy abdominal radiation. Three days following irradiation, net fluid absorption using in vivo isolated loops, mucosal histology, and mucosal morphometry using a computerized videoplan were determined in jejunum, ileum, and colon. Nonirradiated control intestine demonstrated net fluid absorption in all segments, which was not altered by vitamin E and/or misoprostol treatment. Irradiation significantly reduced net fluid absorption in jejunum, ileum, and colon. Vitamin E administered prior to irradiation maintained jejunal, ileal, and colonic fluid absorption near control levels. In contrast misoprostol or a combination of vitamin E and misoprostol did not provide protection against the injury caused by abdominal irradiation. Alterations in intestinal fluid absorption occurred without significant changes in histologic or morphometric appearance. In conclusion, ionizing radiation reduces in vivo intestinal fluid absorption without significant changes in histologic or morphometric appearance. Treatment with vitamin E, but not misoprostol, protects gastrointestinal mucosa against radiation-induced absorptive injury.

Topics: Acute Disease; Animals; Colon; Enteritis; Ileum; Intestinal Absorption; Intestinal Mucosa; Jejunum; Misoprostol; Radiation Injuries, Experimental; Random Allocation; Rats; Vitamin E