Causes of Ischemic Colitis
Numerous factors can temporarily impede the blood flow to your colon. When it is diagnosed, the cause has frequently already been fixed. Your doctor might not be able to pinpoint the exact reason for a brief bout of ischemic colitis in you. But given your medical history and other factors, they might be able to make some educated assumptions. Reduced blood flow in the arteries supplying your colon may be a symptom of diseases affecting your circulatory system, including your heart and blood vessels. One of them might be blocked by a blood clot, or one might be compressed from the outside by something else.
Your superior and inferior mesenteric arteries, which supply your colon, are particularly vulnerable to anything that causes your blood vessels to contract (vasoconstriction). This covers natural triggers like colds, illnesses that lower blood pressure, and specific medications (vasoconstrictors). These arteries tightly contract in response to low blood pressure. The brain and heart, which are your most essential organs, may be receiving extra blood through this survival mechanism, according to scientists. As a result, while this stress reaction is active, your colon might not receive enough blood flow.
Sometimes healthcare professionals differentiate between occlusive and nonocclusive causes of ischemic bowel illness. An obstruction in one of your arteries qualifies as an occlusive cause. Reduced blood flow without a blockage, such as that caused by low blood pressure or artery narrowing, is referred to as a nonocclusive cause. Surgery-related damage is a third factor. Although it is not common, this damage is a known danger of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) [3]. This can be a life-threatening situation and tends to be more severe than other, more temporary forms of ischemic colitis. It happens in 2 to 3 percent of AAA procedures, and the mortality rate is 50 percent.