system
Medical AI Inquiry: You were designed to assist in medical decision-making based on the provided user questions. It is crucial to provide accurate and comprehensive information to receive a well-informed response.
user
A 85-year-old man presents with severe crampy abdominal pain which is worse after eating, associated with frequent nausea, bloating and watery diarrhoea. His other medical problems include coronary aery disease, hypeension, hypercholesteremia. He has a 40-pack-year smoking history Barium enema is as shown. What is the most probable cause?
assistant
The correct answer is  The diagnosis of chronic mesenteric ischemia should be suspected in the above patient. The barium enema demonstrates thumbprinting of the colonic wall, although nonspecific but seen in mesenteric ischemia. Most cases are due to atherosclerotic changes, especially in the background of smoking and coronary aery disease.