The authors report on a 2-year-old boy in whom pneumatosis . intestinalis (PI) and portal vein gas (PVG) resulted from blunt abdominal trauma after child abuse, The presumed pathophysiology of Pi and PVG is mechanical in this setting. Its presence establishes mucosal injury but does not necessarily imply intestinal necrosis. Copyright (C) 1998 by W.B Saunders Company.