P0303 Evaluation of the Terminal Ileum on Computed Tomography of Patients with Non-Traumatic Acute Abdominal Pain in the Emergency Department

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Abstract Background Crohn’s Disease (CD) may be overlooked in patients presenting to the emergency department with acute abdominal pain. We aimed to determine the frequency of CD and increased terminal ileum wall thickness on abdominal computed tomography (CT) in patients presenting to the emergency department with non-traumatic acute abdominal pain. Methods A cross-sectional observational study was conducted among patients who had presented to the emergency department with non-traumatic acute abdominal pain and underwent CT between September 2023 and September 2024. Before CT, patients with known diseases such as CD, vasculitis, tuberculosis, and lymphoma were excluded from the study. A colonoscopy was performed on patients with terminal ileum wall thickness on CT examination. Results A total of 1014 patients were admitted to the emergency department with non-traumatic acute abdominal pain, 10 (1%) of whom were determined to increase terminal ileum wall thickness. The median age was 41.2, and 7 (70%) patients were female. Median terminal ileum wall thickness was measured as 6.04 mm. 9 (90%) had limited terminal ileum, 6 (60%) had a length of wall thickness more than > 5cm, 7 (70%) had stenosis and 5 (50%) had pre-stenotic dilatation on CT. Colonoscopy revealed aphthous ulcers in the terminal ileum in 6 patients, longitudinal deep ulcers in 2 patients, and 2 patients with intact terminal ileum mucosa. 3 (0.3%) of the patients with terminal ileum wall thickness were diagnosed CD after colonoscopic examination. One patient had ileocolonic involvement with stricturing behavior, while the other two had isolated ileal involvement with inflammatory behavior. 2 patients were managed with medical treatment and the other patient with ileal resection. The remaining 5 patients with terminal ileal aphthous ulcers had a history of antibiotic, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use, or gastroenteritis within the last 3 months. Conclusion In this study, CD was detected in 3 (0.3%) patients who has previously undiagnosed, presented non-traumatic acute abdominal pain with terminal ileum wall thickness on CT. Terminal ileitis is a rare reason in patients presenting acute abdominal pain. However, CD should be kept in mind among differential diagnosis.