Missed case of intussusception, a rare cause of abdominal pain in adults: A case report emphasizing the imaging findings and review of the literature

Management of Adult Intussusception-A Case Series Experience from a Tertiary Center

BACKGROUND

The management of intussusception is controversial. Clinical presentation, with the aid of imaging modalities, enables a better selection of patients for the appropriate treatment algorithm. Conservative management versus surgical intervention with bowel resection is considered accordingly.

METHODS

Retrospective review of a computerized database of patients who were admitted with intussusception between January 1, 2010, and December 31, 2020, in a single tertiary center in Israel. Patients who were treated conservatively were compared to those who underwent surgery. Patients who underwent bowel resection were compared to those that had surgery without a resection.

RESULTS

A total of 76 patients were diagnosed with intussusception, and 49 were operated. Bowel resection was performed in 32 cases. 20/76(26%) were successfully managed conservatively. Patients with a lead point (OR = 5.59) and colonic involvement (OR = 13.72) had a higher likelihood for resection. The likelihood of bowel resection was found to be significantly lower with proximal small bowel intussusception (OR = 0.071).

CONCLUSION

Young patients presenting with intussusception may be treated conservatively when adequate criteria are met in order to avoid unnecessary surgical interventions.

Adult Small Bowel Intussusception and Resolution Captured on Pelvic Ultrasound

While abdominal pain is one of the leading causes for ED visits, intestinal intussusception is an infrequent etiology in adults. We present the case of a 22-year-old woman with five days of left lower quadrant abdominal pain with initial workup investigating for a genitourinary source utilizing pelvic ultrasound which revealed small bowel-small bowel intussusception. During the study, resolution of the intussusception correlated temporally with the patient's symptoms. Transient small bowel intussusception in adults has been previously described; however, direct visualization of both the intussusception and its resolution on pelvic ultrasound has not been previously published.