An unusual and challenging cause of small bowel bleeding: Isolated gastrointestinal blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome

Yala Kirthi Reddy; Mahmoud Bayoumi; Matthew Barnes; William Gillespie; Faisal Kamal; Mohammad Ismail; Muhammad Bilal

doi:10.21037/tgh.2020.02.19

An unusual and challenging cause of small bowel bleeding: Isolated gastrointestinal blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome

Transl Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2022 Jan 25:7:12. doi: 10.21037/tgh.2020.02.19. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Yala Kirthi Reddy¹, Mahmoud Bayoumi¹, Matthew Barnes², William Gillespie², Faisal Kamal², Mohammad Ismail², Muhammad Bilal²

Affiliations

¹ Internal Medicine Department, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA.
² Gastroenterology and Hepatology Division, Internal Medicine Department, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA.

Abstract

Blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome (BRBNS) is a rare disease that presents as cutaneous and extra-cutaneous vascular malformations, most commonly affecting the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. We report a case of adult onset BRBNS in an African American male with vascular lesions isolated to the jejunum without any cutaneous manifestations. Physicians should recognize that BRBNS can present without skin involvement and may have complications from visceral organ involvement. Treatment of BRBNS is mainly symptomatic and aims at preserving the GI tract as much as possible. BRBNS may also present as delayed recurrence after surgical or endoscopic interventions.

Keywords: Blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome (BRBNS); arteriovenous malformations (AVM).

Publication types

Case Reports