The Utility of Biomarkers in Diagnosing and Predicting Outcomes in Acute Mesenteric Ischemia

Background: Acute intestinal ischemia stands as the most lethal acute condition encountered by general surgeons and one of the deadliest pathologies in medicine triggered by thromboembolic events. The patients’ survival decreases dramatically to a lower than 30% rate when diagnosed after 24 hours, thus early diagnosis with proper surgical or vascular intervention is mandatory. This study aims to determine the utility of biomarkers and routine blood tests in assessing the severity and mortality risk for patients with acute mesenteric ischemia. Methods: The study was developed on a prospective cross-sectional design over a period of five years, finding a total of 147 patients who underwent emergency surgery after a high suspicion of acute mesenteric ischemia. The available biomarkers used in our Clinic comprised a complete blood count, total bilirubin, CK, CK-MB, LDH, AST, ALT, amylase, and cholinesterase. Results: The leukocyte count (OR=1.105), hemoglobin (OR=3.912), LDH (OR=1.144), NLR (OR=1.154), and LLR (OR=1.286) were all independent and significant risk factors for AMI diagnosis. These covariates proved a good and reliable tool for diagnosing AMI with a 75.3% predicted probability. Conclusion: The prediction tool proved reliable, although it should only be considered in the clinical context where the surgeon suspects a case of acute mesenteric ischemia. The proposed model should be further investigated and validated in larger studies.