<p>Mesenteric ischemia is an acutely occurring often fatal disease in humans, which can be triggered by various causes of acute or acute to chronic disturbances of the intestinal blood circulation. Biomarkers can help to make a timely diagnosis and to start a successful treatment. In this respect, in the recently published guidelines of the European Society of Vascular Surgery it is documented that the data on the use of biomarkers are unclear but there is also a simultaneous necessity to establish biomarkers for the rapid detection of mesenteric ischemia.</p><p>In a recently published study in the European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery the value of biomarkers was investigated in a systematic literature search; significantly, a meta-analysis was not possible due to the inhomogeneity of the data and the studies. The authors correctly concluded that making a diagnosis currently based only on biomarkers is not possible and that studies on biomarkers for the timely detection of mesenteric ischemia are urgently needed. This article deals with the pathophysiology of intestinal ischemia and names various markers that are clinically established or have been experimentally investigated in humans on in animal experiments.</p>