Symptoms and Treatment of Adhesive Bowel Obstruction

The three most classic symptoms of intestinal obstruction are paroxysmal abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, and anal cessation of defecation. Because most of the laparoscopic surgeries are considered to cause intestinal adhesions, and adhesive intestinal obstruction should be treated conservatively first, such as gastrointestinal tube insertion, gastrointestinal decompression, fasting, and maintaining water-electrolyte balance, but also rehydration and prevention of infection. Nowadays, the combination of Chinese and Western medicine treatment by external application of rhubarb and mannitol with ice chips on the abdomen, and also enema can be performed, and the patient can be discharged after relieving the symptoms. If the patient shows peritonitis after 48 hours of conservative treatment, the peritonitis is caused by intestinal obstruction with intestinal strangulation, i.e., intestinal ischemia, and the patient should be treated surgically when the obstructed intestine is twisted and has blood flow changes.