Associations of clinical indexes and prognosis with gut-vascular barrier damage in patients with intestinal obstruction.

BACKGROUND: The gut-vascular barrier (GVB) is critical for maintaining intestinal homeostasis, but its involvement in intestinal obstruction (IO) remains unclear. AIM: To investigate GVB disruption in patients with IO and its association with perioperative infection, organ injury, and clinical prognosis. METHODS: Intestinal tissues from surgical patients with IO (IO group) and without obstruction (control group) were analyzed for PV1, a biomarker of GVB disruption. In the IO group, PV1 expression correlated with clinical data. Patients were further stratified into PV1-high and PV1-low subgroups, and clinical parameters were compared. RESULTS: PV1 expression was significantly elevated in the IO group. In the IO group, PV1 levels were positively correlated with perioperative infection markers, liver and kidney injury indices, and adverse prognostic indicators, including prolonged hospitalization, antibiotic use, fever duration, and postoperative complications. Several of these outcomes were significantly worse in the PV1-high subgroup than in the PV1-low subgroup, although severe postoperative complications and mortality did not differ. CONCLUSION: Our findings demonstrate that IO induces GVB damage, and the extent of impairment is closely associated with infection, organ injury, and adverse clinical outcomes in surgical patients, suggesting a pathogenic role for GVB disruption in IO.