Computed tomography features of small bowel volvulus

Small bowel volvulus is a cause of acute abdomen and commonly occurs in neonates and young infants. Although it is rare in adults in the Western world,' it is a relatively common surgical emergency in the Middle East, India and Central Africa. It is associated with a mortality rate of 10-67% and, hence, it is important to make an early diagnosis to expedite surgical intervention. Computed tomography has become an important imaging modality in diagnosis and a number of signs have been recognized in a handful of documented case reports. We describe a case of small bowel volvulus that illustrates these important CT signs. Copyright (1999) Blackwell Science Pty Ltd