Gastric Necrosis after Gastric Dilatation in a Patient with Bulimia.

Chung, Nak Eun; Lee, Han Young; Kim, Min Jung; Won, You Jin; Kwon, Tae Jung

Case Report

Korean Journal of Legal Medicine 2011;35(2):165-168.
Published online November 30, 2011.

Gastric Necrosis after Gastric Dilatation in a Patient with Bulimia.

Nak Eun Chung, Han Young Lee, Min Jung Kim, You Jin Won, Tae Jung Kwon

Division of Forensic Medicine, National Forensic Service, Seoul, Korea. nechung@korea.kr

Abstract

Acute gastric dilatation leading to gastric necrosis is rare but potentially fatal condition that can occur in patients with bulimia. It usually develops after a bulimic episode and it is not diagnosed with sufficient rapidity it may lead to gastric perforation followed by peritonitis, sepsis, shock, and death. Because of the rarity of this condition and the patients in whom it occurs, the clinician must maintain a high degree of suspicion when treating patients with eating disorders who present with abdominal pain after a binge. This case report describes a 24-year old woman with acute gastric dilatation due to binge eating, who had the gastrotomy and died of complications such as gastric necrosis and disseminated intravascular coagulation.

Key Words: gastric dilatation, gastric necrosis, bulimia

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