Abdominal angina. Intestinal absorption eight years after successful mesenteric revascularization.

A woman with panmalabsorption and symptoms characteristic of abdominal angina underwent successful revascularization of the superior mesenteric artery. Laboratory studies obtained eight years postoperatively were compared with preoperative data. Her stool fat was reduced to 29 per cent of the preoperative quantity, although her dietary intake of fat was increased fivefold. The d-xylose tolerance test was increased to 346 per cent of the preoperative value, serum carotenes to 817 per cent, serum albumin to 172 per cent, hematocrit to 148 per cent, and cholesterol to 296 per cent. Her weight had risen from 69 to 122 pounds. We conclude that the panmalabsorptive defect associated with mesenteric vascular insufficiency is reversible and that the intestine may function normally for a prolonged period of time after revascularization.