Intra-arterial infusion of octreotide to stop gastrointestinal tract bleeding that is difficult to manage surgically: a case report.

Intraluminal bleeding after gastrointestinal and bilopancreatic surgery continues to be a very difficult management problem. Herein, we report two cases of postoperative gastrointestinal bleeding which were successfully treated with intra-arterial infusion of octreotide. The two patients had undergone biliary tract surgery and experienced postoperative gastrointestinal bleeding. Abdominal angiography revealed extravasation from branches of the dorsal pancreatic artery and gastroduodenal artery in each patient, respectively. Transcatheter arterial embolization was performed, but without success in stopping the bleeding. The administration of octreotide via a regional arterial infusion finally stopped the bleeding in each of these two cases.