A Histometrical Study of Submucosal Arteries in the Ileum of Crohn's Disease

• Published in: Nippon Daicho Komonbyo Gakkai Zasshi Vol. 43; no. 3; pp. 286 - 292
• Main Author: Yokoyama, M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Japanese
• Published: The Japan Society of Coloproctology 1990
• ISSN: 0047-1801; 1882-9619
• DOI: 10.3862/jcoloproctology.43.286

Longitudinal ulcer in the ileum is a characteristic figure of Crohn's disease. However, the mechanism of its development is still unclear. To understand the mechanism, involvement of ischemia was examined. The materials were the surgically removed ileum of 7 patients and that from 10 corpses for autopsy (controls). The girth, radius (R) and thickness of the tunica media (D) of the arteries in the submucosal layer were measured. The D/R ratio of the arterioles (<300μm in girth) in the patients was significantly higher than controls and this was mainly brought about by the increase in D. The high ratio was observed in the arterioles in the entire extent of the submucosal layer. There were no such thickenings in the small arteries (≥300μm). These findings suggest that in the ileum of Crohn's disease, thickening of the media of the submucosal arterioles induced chronic ischemic changes in the layer, which cause the typical ulceration.