Review Question - QID 108264

A 43-year-old male presents to the emergency department with abdominal pain, distention, and vomiting. He states that he has not had a bowel movement in 4 days. On physical exam, vitals are stable and within normal limits. Abdominal exam shows a distended, tympanic abdomen that is tender to palpation without rebound or guarding. Laboratory studies are remarkable for a leukocytosis. Helical CT scan shows a small bowel obstruction with a transition point in ileum. The patient is stabilized with NPO, NGT decompression, and IV fluids. The following day, he is taken to the OR for exploratory laparotomy. The following is found on exploration (Figure A). The obstruction is resected, histology with H&E staining of the bowel segment is shown in Figure B. Which of the following would have been found in this patient prior to resection?