Repeated stretched or non-stretched small bowel length measurements in healthy individuals.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to contribute to the establishment of a standard method of small bowel measurement by comparing repeated small bowel length measurements with and without stretching in healthy individuals.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: Small bowel measurement was randomly performed in 24 healthy liver donors. Three repetitive measurements were performed with complete stretching in 12 cases, whereas, 3 consecutive measurements were made without any stretching in the other 12 patients. Living donor hepatectomy continued uneventfully in all cases.

RESULTS: In the non-stretched group, the second measurement was 199 cm shorter than the first measurement (p<0.001). In the third measurement, this shortening had increased further, and the difference from the first measurement was 234 cm on average (p<0.001). In the stretched group, a shortening of approximately 135 cm between the first and second measurements was noted. In the third measurement, an improvement of 4% was observed in contrast to the non-stretched method, with a mean reduction of 105 cm in the small bowel length compared with the first measurement (p<0.001).

CONCLUSION: The stretching technique can reduce the error rate in repeated small bowel measurements.