Computed tomography finding of portal venous gas in a patient who survived mesenteric infarction

Abstract

Hepatic portal venous gas can be a marker of serious intra-abdominal pathology with mortality between 29% and 79%. We report a case of portal venous gas discovered on computerized tomography in a patient presenting with abdominal pain. The finding was unusual in that the patient was not critically unwell at presentation and made a good recovery after laparotomy with small bowel resection.