Background: Isolated superior mesenteric artery dissection (ISMAD) is not a rare disease. However, its optimal treatment strategy has not yet been established.
Methods: This study included 13 consecutive patients with ISMAD who were treated between April 2010 and July 2013 according to published treatment guidelines. Through a literature search, 10 studies on treatments and outcomes for ISMAD that were published from 2007 to the present were analyzed.
Results: In the present study, 11 patients had acute onset abdominal pain and 2 patients were asymptomatic. Twelve patients were treated with conservative treatment, whereas 1 patient underwent coil embolization. In the literature review, initial conservative treatment, endovascular procedure, and surgical repair were done in 172, 25, and 14 patients, respectively. Bowel resection was done in 8 patients (3.7%) due to bowel necrosis. Conservative treatment failed in 15 patients (6.8%) during follow-up.
Conclusions: If bowel necrosis or arterial rupture was not present, conservative treatment of ISMAD was a safe and effective treatment. Aneurysmal type IV patients on computed tomography scan should be carefully followed up, and if there is a recurrence of pain or aneurysmal progression, an endovascular procedure could be safely performed.
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