Aging jejunal vascular ectasia as a cause of persistent intestinal bleeding.

Undiagnosed gastrointestinal bleeding is a major problem in medical practice. This paper describes a patient with vascular intestinal ectasia who had repeated severe intestinal hemorrhages for two years, and required surgery. Vascular intestinal ectasia was demonstrated radiologically, histologically and by electron microscopy in a 25 cm upper jejunum resection. The absence of ultrastructural alterations in intestinal vessels points out that the term "aging vascular ectasia" (Moore Type I) seems preferable, when Rendu Ossler, Von Willebrand and intestinal hemangioma are discarded.