Management of patients with stercoral perforation of the sigmoid colon： Report of five cases

• Published in: World journal of gastroenterology : WJG Vol. 12; no. 3; pp. 500 - 503
• Main Authors: Huang, Wen-Shih, Wang, Chia-Siu, Hsieh, Ching-Chuan, Lin, Paul Y, Chin, Chih-Chien, Wang, Jeng-Yi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine,Chang Gung University, Kwei-Shan, Taiwan, China%Division of General Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Pu-tzu 613 Taiwan,China%Division of Anatomical Pathology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Pu-tzu 613 Taiwan, China%Division of Colon and Rectal Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Putzu 613, Taiwan, China 21.01.2006; Division of Colon and Rectal Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Putzu 613, Taiwan, China; Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited
• Subjects: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Case Report; Child, Preschool; Colon, Sigmoid - pathology; Colon, Sigmoid - surgery; Constipation - etiology; Female; Humans; Intestinal Perforation - complications; Intestinal Perforation - diagnosis; Intestinal Perforation - pathology; Intestinal Perforation - surgery; Male; Middle Aged; Retrospective Studies; 乙状结肠; 大便检查; 检验方法; 细菌感染; Stercoral perforation; Colon; Management
• ISSN: 1007-9327; 2219-2840
• DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v12.i3.500

To our knowledge, stercoral perforation of the colon is rarely seen with fewer than 90 cases reported in the literature till date. We explored the principles of management to prevent impending mortality in five patients with this condition. Five patients, two males and three females, whose median age was 64 years, had sustained stercoral perforation of the sigmoid colon. Chronic constipation was the common symptom among these patients. Three patients underwent a Hartmann＇s procedure and another two were treated with segmental colectomy with anastomosis and diverting colostomy. There was one surgical mortality and the other patients had an uneventful hospital stay. Timely intervention to prevent and/or treat any associated sepsis along with extensive peritoneal lavage and surgical intervention to remove diseased colonic tissue at the primary stercoral ulceration site coupled with aggressive therapy for peritonitis are key treatment modalities in salvaging patients presenting with stercoral perforation of the colon.