Role of MDCT in the diagnosis of internal hernias

Abstract

Internal hernias account for approximately 0.6–5.8% of all cases of intestinal obstruction and are associated with a high mortality rate, exceeding 50% in some series. To complicate matters, the incidence of internal hernias is constantly increasing because of a number of relatively new surgical procedures now being performed, including liver transplantation and gastric bypass surgeries. It is important for radiologists to be familiar with and to understand the variouos types of internal hernias, their imaging features and make the utmost use of the emerging MDCT applications so that prompt and accurate diagnosis of these conditions can be made. Keywords: Internal hernia, intestinal obstruction, volvulus, gastric bypass surgeries, abdominal imaging, multidetector CT, 3D reconstruction, multiplanar reformatted images.