[Mechanical obstruction as a cause of acute abdomen. Radiological differential diagnosis].

Mechanical obstruction is a common cause of acute abdomen. Besides the diagnosis of the obstruction itself it is crucial to recognize the cause of the obstruction for planning of conservative or operative treatment.This article gives a general overview of the methods available for imaging obstructions in the setting of an acute abdomen. In the second part the differential diagnoses of the most common causes of obstruction will be discussed.