Short bowel syndrome: a clinical review

Short bowel syndrome (SBS), also known as intestinal failure, is characterised by the inadequate absorption of nutrients, owing to a reduction in small intestine resulting in the inability to maintain nutritional status with oral intake alone (Parrish and DiBaise, 2017). Although uncommon, this condition carries a high cost to the NHS, with many patients requiring lifelong parental nutrition (PN) to maintain nutritional stability (Parrish and DiBaise, 2017). With Seetharam and Rodrigues (2011) reporting 30-50% mortality rates, goals lie in supporting and improving function and absorption of the bowel. The probability of irreversible intestinal failure is 94% after two years of PN (Messing et al., 1999), therefore, timely appropriate treatment is vital. Exposure to this condition is infrequent due to its rarity, rendering it poorly understood by many clinicians, therefore value lies in educating the wider health care community, for timely diagnosis and treatment.