Non specific jejunoileitis--a report of 8 cases.

Nonspecific jejuno-ileitis is a nonocclusive, necrotizing inflammation of the small intestine. We treated 8 patients of jejuno-ileitis in a short span of 8 months. Their mean age was 8.6 years. All had acute pain in abdomen and most had hematochezia. Radiology was helpful only in diagnosis of complications of the disease. Four patients responded to conservative management; the other 4 required surgery--laparotomy and lavage in 2, and multiple laparotomies with resections in 2. One patient died due to chronic malnutrition and metabolic complications. Bowel histology was suggestive of resolving vasculitis in one patient and chronic inflammation in another patient.