Evaluation & Treatment for Mesenteric Adenitis

Mesenteric adenitis is the shortened form of mesenteric lymphadenitis, a mild medical condition that causes temporary abdominal discomfort. It afflicts children primarily and sometimes produces no symptoms besides inflamed lymph nodes.

Evaluation

• Doctors diagnose mesenteric adenitis by taking a medical history; asking how and when symptoms occurred; studying blood test results for signs of infection; and reviewing images of the patient's abdomen (for example, computerized tomography scans) to rule out similar conditions, such as appendicitis. No single test can detect mesenteric adenitis.

Treatment

• Mesenteric adenitis is rarely serious and usually disappears without intervention in several days or weeks. Standard treatments include prescription antibiotics and non-prescription fever and pain relievers.

Home Remedies

• Patients can help treat mesenteric adenitis symptoms at home by getting sufficient rest, placing a moist and warm washcloth on the abdomen and drinking a lot of fluids to prevent dehydration.

Considerations

• According to Patient UK, invasive procedures (for example, a laparoscopy) are sometimes required to detect mesenteric adenitis if tests fail to rule out other potential conditions, such as appendicitis.

Warning

• Although mesenteric adenitis often requires minimal or no treatment, potentially fatal sepsis is a risk if bacteria caused the condition and it reaches the bloodstream due to lack of treatment.