Intestinal infarction following carbon monoxide poisoning.

A 65 year old patient admitted with carbon monoxide poisoning developed acute pulmonary oedema during treatment with hyperbaric oxygen. After initial recovery he developed extensive intestinal ischaemia which rapidly led to death. It is suggested that intestinal vasoconstriction due to left ventricular failure made the gut much more vulnerable to the hypoxic effects of carbon monoxide than the brain and heart.