719 Colovaginal Fistula from Neglected Vaginal Pessary; Fallouts from the COVID-19 Pandemic

An 86-year-old lady was admitted with a one-week history of feeling unwell, polyuria, dysuria, urinary and faecal incontinence. She had previously been treated for recurrent UTIs by her GP. On examination she had suprapubic tenderness but no peritonism. Observations revealed tachycardia of 122bpm with a temperature of 36.3*C. Inflammatory markers were raised with a white cell count of 22.0x106 /L and CRP 129 mg/L. Urine cultures grew Pseudomonas aeruginosa. She was managed for urosepsis with intravenous antibiotics. Past medical history included vaginal pessary for uterine prolapse, congestive cardiac failure, hypertension, polymyalgia and osteoporosis She lived alone with no package of care. On admission she improved with intravenous antibiotics however she had a perineal examination due to ongoing faecal and urinary incontinence and was noticed to be passing faeces per vaginam. A colo-vaginal fistula was suspected, and she was reviewed by the gynaecologist who noted her pessary had been in-situ for up to a year and her routine appointment to have it changed was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. An MRI Pelvic scan confirmed a 3x2cm rectovaginal fistula. She was reviewed by the general surgery team and the decision was made for her to be defunctioned to prevent her episodes of recurrent UTIs and improve her quality of life. She successfully had a laparoscopic end colostomy with an uneventful post-operative period. This case highlights the harms caused from the cancellation of appointments and demonstrates a rare cause of rectovaginal fistula.

A vastagbél-diverticulosis sebészi kezelése

Összefoglaló. Bevezetés: A vastagbél-diverticulosis a lakosság kb. 60%-át érinti, incidenciája folyamatosan növekszik. A betegek 6%-ánál van szükség sebészi beavatkozásra. Jelenleg nincs egységes irányelv, mikor indokolt elektív műtétet végezni. Módszer: Retrospektív módszerrel elemeztük az osztályunkon 2017. július 17. és 2020. április 30. között vastagbél-diverticulosis miatt operált betegek demográfiai és műtéti adatait, emellett a szövődmények arányát. Összehasonlítottuk az elektív (EM) és a sürgős műtétek (SM), illetve a nyitott és a laparoszkópos műtétek adatait. Eredmények: 38 operált beteg közül 19-nél történt EM, illetve 19 betegnél SM. A betegek átlagéletkora az EM-eknél 64 év, az SM-ek esetében 67 év volt. EM-nél az indikáció 12 esetben recidiváló diverticulitis, 5 esetben colovesicalis, 2 esetben colovaginalis sipoly volt. SM-nél az indikáció 17 esetben perforáció, 2 esetben hasüregi tályog volt. Az EM-ek 89%-a laparoszkópos módon került elvégzésre; az átlagos műtéti idő EM/SM esetében 96 perc/89 perc, az átlagos ápolási napok száma 17/14 volt. Az EM-csoportból 1 beteg, míg az SM-csoportból 5 beteg meghalt. Szignifikáns különbség volt a műtét típusa, a stomaképzés és a transzfúziós igény tekintetében. Nem találtunk szignifikáns eltérést a posztoperatív ápolási napok és a mortalitás tekintetében. Következtetés: Az elektív műtétek alacsonyabb morbiditása és mortalitása, illetve a laparoszkópos technika alkalmazhatósága miatt törekedni kell a tervezett műtétre. Nincs egységes irányelv a relatív műtéti indikáció felállításában: gasztroenterológus és sebész által felállított, személyre szabott kezelési stratégia szükséges. Véleményünk szerint indokolt a műtét, amennyiben igazolt diverticulosis esetében szigorú diéta mellett kiújul a gyulladás. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(51): 2146–2152. Summary. Introduction: Colonic diverticulosis affects 60% of the population, incidence of the disease grows progressively. During its course, 6% of patients with diverticulosis will need surgical intervention. There is no current guideline when to carry out elective operation. Method: We analyzed demographics, surgical patient data and also post-operative complications of patients operated in our department due to colonic diverticulosis between 17-07-2017 and 30-04-2020 retrospectively. We compared the results of elective (ES) and acute surgeries (AS), also laparotomies versus laparoscopies. Results: 19 out of 38 patients underwent ES and 19 AS. ES group average age was 64 years, and 67 in the AS group. Indications of ES were recurring diverticulitis in 12, colovesical fistula in 5 and colovaginal fistula in 2 cases. Indications of AS were perforations in 17 and intraabdominal abscesses in 2 cases. 89% of all ES were operated laparoscopically; average operation time in ES/AS was 96/89 minutes, average hospital stay was 17/14 days. 1 patient after ES and 5 after AS died. Significant difference was found between the groups with regard to the type of operation, frequency of colostomy creation and the need of blood transfusion but no significant difference was demonstrated in average hospital stay and mortality. Conclusion: Due to the lower morbidity and mortality rate as well as the benefits of laparoscopic approach, we should always opt for ES. No guideline for relative surgical indication exists: gastroenterologist and surgeon should make a personalized surgical plan. In our opinion, operation should be carried out if diverticulitis reoccurs while the patient is on strict diet. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(51): 2146–2152.

Late Post-Hysterectomy Colovaginal Fistula with Extensive Diverticular Disease

The diagnosis of colovaginal fistula came to light in this 70-year-old woman, 22 years after hysterectomy, based on clinics. But, intraoperative and histopathological diagnoses were arduous. Confirmation that a fistula extended from the sigmoid colon into the vaginal stump was sanctioned by a fragment of squamous epithelium disclosed within a colonic fistula.