The Diagnostic Value of Coagulation Indicators and Inflammatory Markers in Distinguishing Between Strangulated and Simple Intestinal Obstruction

Intestinal obstruction with strangulation can be life-threating, and it is critical to make an accurate and timely diagnosis for emergency surgery. OBJECTIVE: This was aimed to investigate the value of coagulation indicators and inflammatory markers in distinguishing between strangulated and simple intestinal obstruction. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-four patients with intestinal obstruction were retrospectively studied. The correlation between coagulation indicators and inflammatory markers with intestinal obstruction was analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic curves were created to assess their ability in discriminative diagnosis. RESULTS: Levels of fibrinogen (Fib), C-reactive protein (CRP), neutrophil ratio, and D-Dimer were significantly greater, while thrombin time was significantly shorter in strangulated intestinal obstruction compared with simple intestinal obstruction. Furthermore, Fib levels in the necrosis subgroup of strangulated intestinal obstruction were significantly higher than those in the ischemia subgroup and simple intestinal obstruction group. The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve were 0.58 for white blood cells, 0.78 for CRP, and 0.80 for Fib. Using the optimal cutoff values of Fib (3.71 g/L) and CRP (14.54 mg/L), the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value in discriminating between strangulated intestinal obstruction and simple intestinal obstruction were 51.43%, 100%, 100%, and 52.78% for Fib, and 56.25%, 94.44%, 94.74%, and 54.84% for CRP, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Fib and CRP demonstrate good performance in predicting strangulation and are indicative of intestinal necrosis and ischemia. The combination of this coagulation indicator and inflammatory marker holds potential for better discrimination between strangulated and simple intestinal obstruction.