[Clinical aspects of the endocrinologically inactive small intestinal carcinoid].

Casuistically is reported on two patients with an endocrine inactive ileum carcinoid, in whom the anamnesis with 5 weeks or 10 months was very short and atypical. Continuously increasing abdominal pain and gradual formation of a lower ileus of the small intestine or profuse watery diarrhoeas were the leading symptoms. Intraoperatively or autoptically in each case a very small (less than 1.5 cm) ileum carcinoid was found, which had led to a stenosing of high degree, there were no fibroses of the endocardium, no liver metastases--accordingly the secretion of serotonine metabolites (5-HIES) in the urine had been normal. The possibility of a so-called endocrine-nervous enteropathy in the female patient with the diarrhoea symptomatology and the necessity of a rapid diagnostic clarification in suspicion of a tumour in the lower small intestine are discussed, since such a suspicion in most cases corresponds to a carcinoid and thus there exists a great chance of cure.