In the small bowel, 30 to 40% of bleeding is caused by abnormal blood vessels in the wall of the small bowel. These abnormal blood vessels have many names, including angioectasias, angiodysplasias, or arteriovenous malformations (AVMs).he small bowel (or small intestine) is the longest portion of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. It is called small because it is thin or narrow compared with the large bowel (also known as the colon), but it is much longer than the large bowel (14 feet on average).
Don't forget the multiple causes of an elevated d-dimer: 1  PE/DVT. 2  Sepsis/infection. 3  Malignancy. 4  Renal disease. 5  Pregnancy. 6  MI. 7  Stroke.
D-dimer is a breakdown product of a blood clot, and measuring D-dimer levels is one way doctors exclude a diagnosis of pulmonary embolism (PE). Several studies have shown that D-dimer levels increase with age.