ABSTRACT
Although conventional enteroclysis (CE) is widely recognized as the most reliable method for radiological evaluation of the small bowel (1,2), it is not free of limitations. Radiation exposure, an important consideration when multiple follow-up examinations in young patients with Crohn’s disease are possible, and inability to demonstrate exoenteric pathology associated with small intestinal diseases are inherent drawbacks. Computed tomography (CT) has been utilized as a complementary or alternative diagnostic approach (3), while the combination of CT and enteroclysis has recently been introduced (4) with claims that it combines the advantages of both approaches. Limited prospective data are available but suggest that the combined technique may be applicable in patients with obstructive symptoms, known or suspected malignancy, and for assessment of complicated Crohn’s disease. However, poor soft tissue contrast, radiation exposure, and practical restriction to axial slices are inherent limitations of the method. Recent advances in CT technology, namely the introduction of multidetector systems, may further increase the role of CT for small
bowel imaging, due to better through-plane spatial resolution and the ability to obtain multiplanar reformats (5).
