Massive lower digestive hemorrhage caused by jejunal cavernous hemangioma detected with scintigraphy

We report the case of a patient who needed urgent surgical assistance because of massive lower gastrointestinal hemorrhage secondary to a jejunal angiodysplasia (cavernous hemangioma). These lesions are a rare cause of gastrointestinal bleeding of obscure origin. The use of preoperative diagnostic techniques such as oral fiber-optic endoscopy, barium intestinal studies and scintigraphy have little value when the origin of lower gastrointestinal bleeding is in the small bowel. The best yield is obtained with celiac or superior mesenteric angiography. There are some cases in which only an exploratory surgical laparotomy is useful for the diagnostic supported by intraoperative enteroscopy guided by the surgeon.