This post is an answer to the Case – Patient with Colicky Abdominal Pain and Constipation
What radiological abnormalities can you see ?
- Gas-filled dilated bowel in the periphery of abdomen (‘picture framing’) – representing the location of the caecum, ascending, transverse and descending colon
- Widely-spaced incomplete bands along the walls of the dilated bowel – representing haustra (this is therefore large bowel)
- Absence of rectal gas
Diagnosis
Supine abdominal radiograph showing gas-filled dilated proximal large bowel and collapsed distal large bowel suggestive of mechanical large bowel obstruction. Gas-filled dilated bowel in the periphery of abdomen (‘picture framing’) – representing the location of the caecum, ascending, transverse and descending colon. Note the prominent haustra (arrows) – the widely spaced incomplete bands along the walls of the dilated bowel and absence of gas in the rectum.
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