narrowing of the intestinal lumen

A lumen is an opening inside a tubular body structure that is lined with body tissue known as an epithelial membrane. Examples of body structures with internal cavities include the large intestine, small intestine, veins, and arteries.

The origin of the name is from Latin lumens, its one meaning is “light”. This is probably because the lumen is an opening inside the tube, through which light passes.

The size of the intestinal lumen may be measured to determine whether the intestinal wall is thickened. As the intestinal wall thickens and the lumen narrows, problems such as strictures (narrow areas of the intestine) can occur.

intestinal lumen

In the intestine, the lumen is the opening within the intestine. It is surrounded by other parts of the intestinal wall: mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, and serosa.

For food to pass through the intestines, the lumen must be clear, open, and free of structural problems that could cause obstruction. In people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), the lumen can be affected.

IBD goes through active and remission periods. If the disease is advanced, inflammation may occur that affects the surface layer (mucosal layer) of the intestines, leading to ulcers. As the disease is managed and the ulcers on the lining of the intestinal wall heal in places, scar tissue may form.

Repeated cycles of inflammation and healing can cause scar tissue to build up, resulting in thickening of the intestinal wall.

When the lumen begins to narrow

Scar tissue behaves differently because it is not as flexible as normal tissue. When there is scar tissue in the intestines, the lumen may become affected and become narrowed or blocked (obstructed).

The narrowed area of ​​the lumen is called a stenosis. Waste products cannot easily pass through the lumen and can cause pain, intestinal obstruction, and other complications.

Although strictures tend to be more commonly associated with Crohn’s disease than with ulcerative colitis, they can occur in both forms of IBD.

That’s because Crohn’s disease can occur anywhere in the gastrointestinal tract, from the mouth to the anus, and can affect multiple layers of the intestinal wall. Ulcerative colitis usually affects only the large intestine and rectum, and the inflammation it causes is generally limited to the superficial mucosal layer.

In Crohn’s disease, strictures tend to occur in the small intestine, and in ulcerative colitis, strictures tend to occur in the rectum.

Strictures can be very troublesome for IBD patients because they prevent food from moving through the intestines. If the stricture is very narrow, food begins to flow back into the intestines. This can cause an intestinal blockage, with symptoms such as pain, vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation.

In some cases, the obstruction can be treated in the hospital with a nasogastric (NG) tube or other methods, but some strictures are advanced enough to require surgery. Without surgery, the blockage may persist.