colon cut-off sign

colon cut-off sign

Imaging Gaseous distension of the right and transverse colon with ↓ or absent air beyond the splenic flexure, a finding characteristic of acute pancreatitis; the inflamed transverse mesocolon–which is attached to the anterior pancreas 'cuts off' the barium flow, causing mesenteric arterial thrombosis and ischemic colitis

McGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.