Clinically Suspected Intussusception in Children: Evidence-Based Review and Self-Assessment Module

A Novel Low-Cost Simulation Model for Point-of-Care Ultrasound Intussusception Practice

Pediatric intussusception is a relatively common yet serious condition where prompt diagnosis is crucial. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) has proven accurate for diagnosing this disease and can expedite both diagnosis and treatment. Previous research has shown that emergency physicians can diagnose intussusception with acceptable sensitivity and specificity but require prior training in recognizing the pathology. Despite the disease's relative frequency, any individual physician rarely encounters it, making a simulation model vital for learning this ultrasound modality. We created a model using low-cost, easily available components that can be used to train emergency physicians to diagnose intussusception on POCUS.

Unsuspecting Lead Points Causing Nonobstructing Intussusceptions in Pediatric Patients Presenting with Chronic Pain Abdomen

Intussusception is one of the common causes of bowel obstruction in pediatric age group and is of idiopathic variety in most of the cases. Nonobstructing intussusception presenting with nonspecific symptoms (or chronic pain abdomen) is rare and usually clinically misdiagnosed/difficult to diagnose. The authors present a pictorial review of 10 cases of pediatric nonobstructing intussusception presenting with acute/chronic abdominal pain which were not suspected clinically but diagnosed with a pathologic lead point radiologically.

COVID-19 Can Cause Severe Intussusception in Infants: Case Report and Literature Review

COVID-19 may cause intussusception in infants. We report on a case of severe ileo-colic intussusception in an infant with COVID-19 who required an ileo-colic resection. A literature review revealed 9 other cases with COVID-19 and intussusception. In this article, we will discuss the management and treatment of the first reported case of intussusception associated with COVID-19 in Italy.

Factors Associated with Failure of Pneumatic Reduction in Children with Ileocolic Intussusception

Intussusception is one of the most common causes of intestinal obstruction in children. Pneumatic reduction is the treatment of choice and has a high success rate. The most common cause of pneumatic reduction failure is the presence of a pathological leading point. We aimed to identify other factors that can lead to pneumatic reduction failure in children with ileocolic intussusception. This was a retrospective study conducted in two centers. Data were collected from January 2013 to December 2014. A total of 156 patients were diagnosed with intussusception and underwent pneumatic reduction, with the exception of one patient with peritonitis. We included patients with ileocolic-type intussusception without apparent pathological leading points. Logistic regression analysis of clinical parameters was performed to identify factors associated with pneumatic reduction failure. Of 156 patients diagnosed with intussusception in both hospitals, 145 were enrolled in the study. The overall efficacy of pneumatic reduction was 85.7%, and surgical reduction was performed in 21 patients. Univariate analysis showed that a high segmented neutrophil count, low hemoglobin level, high body temperature, and higher weight percentile were associated with pneumatic reduction failure. Multivariate analysis showed that a high segmented neutrophil count, low hemoglobin level, and higher weight percentile were significantly associated with pneumatic reduction failure. Pneumatic reduction is safe and effective as a first-line treatment for pediatric intussusception. However, a high segmented neutrophil count, low hemoglobin level, and higher weight percentile are associated with the failure of this treatment.

Diagnostic Accuracy of Point-Of-Care Ultrasound for Intussusception Performed by Pediatric Emergency Medicine Physicians

BACKGROUND

Intussusception (INT) is a common cause of bowel obstruction in young children. Delay in diagnosis can lead to significant morbidity and mortality. There have been several studies evaluating early point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in the diagnosis of INT by nonradiologists.

OBJECTIVE

Our objective was to determine the diagnostic accuracy of POCUS by novice sonographer pediatric emergency medicine physicians (PEM-Ps) who received focused US training for diagnosing INT.

METHODS

We performed a prospective observational study including 17 PEM-Ps (14 attendings, 3 fellows) trained to perform abdominal US for INT. Children suspected of having INT received POCUS performed and interpreted by a PEM-P, followed by a US study performed by a certified ultrasonographer and interpreted by an attending pediatric radiologist. Diagnostic concordance between PEM-P-and radiology-performed US (RPUS) results was assessed.

RESULTS

One hundred patients were enrolled; median patient age was 24 months. There was excellent diagnostic agreement for presence or absence of INT between PEM-Ps and RPUS (97% of cases; κ = 0.826). POCUS-diagnosed INT was present in 8 of 9 patients with RPUS-diagnosed INT (sensitivity 89%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 51-99%; specificity 98%; 95% CI 92-100%; positive predictive value 80%; 95% CI 44-96%; negative predictive value 99%; 95% CI 93-100%). Likelihood ratio for INT with a positive POCUS was 40.44 (95% CI 10.07-162.36) and with a negative POCUS was 0.11 (95% CI 0.02-0.72).

CONCLUSIONS

POCUS performed by novice sonographers to diagnose INT has high diagnostic concordance with RPUS. Emergency department-performed POCUS is a rapid and accurate method for diagnosing INT.

Hydrostatic reduction of intussusception in children: a single centre experience

Introduction

intussusception is a common surgical emergency in children especially in infants. Treatment of intussusception could be non-operative or operative. Non-operative treatment (hydrostatic reduction) of intussusception is increasingly being practiced in developing countries.

Methods

this was a review of our experience in the hydrostatic reduction of intussusception in children at a teaching hospital in Enugu, Nigeria. This study covered an 18-months period, October 2017 to March 2019. Patients on presentation were resuscitated, appropriate investigations done and prepared for surgery before the hydrostatic reduction (using normal saline) was carried out. Patients with features of peritonitis and marked abdominal distension were excluded from hydrostatic reduction.

Results

twenty patients who had 21 episodes of intussusception were analyzed. One patient had a recurrence that necessitated repeat hydrostatic reduction. Eighty percent of the patients were male. The mean and peak age of the patients was 8 months and 6 months respectively. Significant number of the patients presented after 48 hours of onset of their symptoms. Abdominal pain was the predominant presenting symptom. Twenty percent and fifteen percent of the patients had a history of preceding gastrointestinal and respiratory infections preceding the intussusception respectively. Ileocolic intussusception was the most common type and the most distal end of the intussusception was at the transverse colon. Hydrostatic reduction was successful in 13 patients (65%).

Conclusion

hydrostatic reduction is a simple and effective method of treatment of intussusception. However, early presentation and proper patient selection is necessary for optimal outcome.

Ultrasonography for the Diagnosis of Intussusception in Children: An Experience From Pakistan

INTRODUCTION

Intussusception can lead to small bowel obstruction in children, hence the early diagnosis of this condition is very important. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of sonography in the diagnostic work-up of children with suspected intussusceptions in the emergency setting, keeping surgical findings as the gold standard.

METHODS AND DESIGN

Two hundred patients with classical presentation of intussusceptions, who were diagnosed either by barium enema or CT scan, were included in this study. Patients with irreducible intussusceptions on color Doppler were followed after surgery.

RESULTS

The average age of the patients was 6.7 ± 2.8 years, and the study population consisted of 115 (57.5%) boys and 85 (42.5%) girls. One hundred forty-three patients were confirmed to have intussusception on ultrasonography, of whom 117 (81.8%) were confirmed to have intussusception after surgery while 26 (18%) were not diagnosed with intussusception during surgery. Despite the clinical presentation of intussusceptions, ultrasonography was not diagnostic in 57 patients, of whom 28 were confirmed to have intussusception after surgery and 29 were not found to have the disease.

CONCLUSION

Use of ultrasonography in cases with intussusception has proven to be a reliable and accurate method for diagnosing intussusception and provides an advantage over unnecessary radiological or surgical procedures being performed.

The pediatric gastrointestinal tract: ultrasound findings in acute diseases

The study of the gastrointestinal tract by imaging, particularly using ultrasound, is a required instrument for diagnosis of acute and chronic gastrointestinal pathologies in pediatric age. Actually, ultrasound plays an increasing role in the evaluation of gastrointestinal tract in neonatal and pediatric patients because of their small body habitus and the presence of less fat tissue in the abdominal wall and peritoneal cavity. Ultrasound has certain advantages, thanks to the new wide-spectrum frequency probes able to assess a detailed study of the morphological aspects and functional characteristics of bowel loops, adding a new dimension to the imaging of this body system. In this paper, we review anatomy, ultrasound technique and sonographic findings of bowel pathology frequently encountered in neonatal and pediatric emergency setting.

Acute intestinal intussusception of the infant and the child: A 5-year study of 66 cases

BACKGROUND

Acute intestinal intussusception (AII) is defined as the telescoping of part of the intestine into the intestinal segment beneath it. The consequence is an obstruction and strangulation which can lead to necrosis of the intestinal tract that has telescoped. The aim of our work is, on the one hand, to assess our management style throughout analysis of clinical different aspects and on the other hand to set up a strategy for early diagnosis and treatment.

METHODS

It is a retrospective study over 5 years from 2010 to 2015 including infants and children who had been treated for AII in Albert Royer Children's Hospital. The following variables such as age, sex, past time before the surgical consultation, initial diagnosis, imaging data view, treatment technique and results were itemised to bear comparison. Sixty-six records were reviewed.

RESULTS

The mean age was 5.73 months with a range of 2 and 144 months. Boys constituted the majority of patients with a ratio of 2:1. Children were referred to us with the diagnosis of intestinal obstruction or gastroenteritis in 50% of cases. Past time average before consultation was 5.3 days with a range of 14 h and 30 days. Most of the patients underwent surgery within 48 h after the beginning of the clinical picture. An abdominal ultrasound scan confirmed the diagnosis of AII in 57 cases, whereas in 9 cases, it was normal or not contributive. Non-operative reduction by retrograde pneumatic pressure or barium enema represented 33.4% of patients against 56.6% for surgical treatment. We registered 5 deaths and 2 recurrences. AII remains the main cause of intestinal obstruction in infants.

CONCLUSION

Authors stressed on delay in diagnosis with the treatment consequences belonging to that status and put emphasis in the importance of close collaboration between paediatricians, surgeons and radiologist for early diagnosis and nonoperative systematic reduction.

Appendiceal phlegmon mimicking intussusception on ultrasound: correspondence between sonographic and operative findings

Little is known about the possibility that ruptured appendicitis may produce a false sonographic appearance of intussusception. We present here a case of a periappendiceal phlegmon mimicking ileocolic intussusception on ultrasound in a 3.5-year-old girl and provide a surgico-anatomic explanation on the basis of the intraoperative findings for the false sonographic image. CT imaging was used to make the diagnosis. Intraoperatively, it was revealed that the cecum and sigmoid, which were adherent to each other with pseudomembranes, formed an intestinal mass around the appendix. Accordingly, the appendicolith at the center of the phlegmon was responsible for the central echogenicity, and the surrounding cecum and sigmoid for the external hypoechoic and hyperechoic rings of the target-sign appearing mass on the preoperative ultrasound. Such an understanding of the etiology of the false sonographic image may help to increase awareness and avoid misdiagnosis.

The role of US in finding intussusception and alternative diagnosis: a report of 100 pediatric cases

BACKGROUND

The clinical diagnosis of intussusception remains challenging, because many children with intussusception may present with non-specific signs and symptoms, which overlap with other conditions. Therefore imaging, in particular ultrasonography (US), plays a significant role in the management of these patients.

PURPOSE

To evaluate how US can contribute to the diagnosis in clinically suspected intussusception and finding alternative diagnosis.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed reports of US examinations and medical records of 100 patients (51 boys, 49 girls; mean age, 23.0 ± 12.1 months) who underwent abdominal US for clinically suspected intussusception. Each US study was assessed for the presence or absence of intussusception and for a possible alternative diagnosis in cases interpreted as negative for intussusception.

RESULTS

Thirty-seven patients had US findings consistent with intussusception, which was confirmed by air enema. In seven patients, US studies were normal. Alternative diagnoses were identified by US for each of the remaining 56 patients, including ileocolitis (n = 20), terminal ileitis (n = 18), mesenteric lymphadenitis (n = 13), choledochal cyst (n = 1), accessory spleen torsion (n = 1), small bowel ileus (n = 1), midgut volvulus with bowel ischemia (n = 1), and hydronephrosis (n = 1).

CONCLUSION

With the high sensitivity and specificity of this study we conclude that US is valuable in detecting intussusception and finding the alternative diagnosis.

Clinical signs and symptoms associated with intussusception in young children undergoing ultrasound in the emergency room

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to evaluate all patients suspected of having intussusception and identify which signs and symptoms were associated with the disease.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective review of 553 charts from 2006 to 2010 of patients' age 2 months to 5 years who had an abdominal ultrasound obtained to evaluate for intussusception. Charts were reviewed for signs and symptoms previously shown to be associated with intussusception.

RESULTS

There were 452 patients (mean age, 21.5 months, 43% female) evaluated and 101 (22.3%) were found to have intussusception. Of the 18 signs and symptoms, crying (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 3.3; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.3-8.1), abdominal mass (adjusted OR, 15.7; 95% CI, 4.4-55.3), pallor (adjusted OR, 6.5; 95% CI, 1.8-23.5), and vomiting (adjusted OR, 3.1; 95% CI, 1.4-6.5) were associated with disease confirmation in logistic regression analysis. The presence of all 4 clinical signs/symptoms together resulted in a 95% probability of intussusception. Intussusception was unlikely if all 4 clinical indicators were absent (probability = 1.6%).

CONCLUSIONS

The presence of crying, abdominal mass, pallor, and vomiting were clinical indicators of intussusception. Individually, none of these variables were helpful in confirming the diagnosis but in the presence of all 4, there is a 95% probability of having the disease. The absence of all 4 of these made the likelihood of having the disease very low.

Imaging acute complications in cancer patients: what should be evaluated in the emergency setting?

Increased incidence world-wide of cancer and increased survival has also resulted in physicians seeing more complications in patients with cancer. In many cases, complications are the first manifestations of the disease. They may be insidious and develop over a period of months, or acute and manifest within minutes to days. Imaging examinations play an essential role in evaluating cancer and its complications. Plain radiography and ultrasonography (US) are generally performed initially in an urgent situation due to their wide availability, low cost, and minimal or no radiation exposure. However, depending on a patient's symptoms, evaluation with cross-sectional imaging methods such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is often necessary. In this review article, we discuss some of the most important acute noninfectious oncological complications for which imaging methods play an essential role in diagnosis.

Osteosarcoma metastasis causing ileo-ileal intussusception

Osteosarcoma metastasis causing intussusception is a very rare entity, with a pejorative prognosis. Based on a case, we performed a literature review in order to better assess this situation. We conclude that, in patients with a history of osteosarcoma lung metastasis, echographic and/or computed tomography scan evidence of a small bowel obstruction with intussusception should lead to an open surgical procedure if the laparoscopic approach does not allow to accurately explore and resect the lesion, in order to prevent misdiagnosis and to avoid further delay in the management.

Emergent pediatric US: what every radiologist should know

Appendicitis, intussusception, and hypertrophic pyloric stenosis (HPS) are three of the most common reasons for emergent abdominal imaging in pediatric patients. Although the use of computed tomography has risen dramatically over the past 2 decades, children are particularly at risk for the adverse effects of ionizing radiation, and even low-dose radiation is associated with a small but significant increase in lifetime risk of fatal cancer. In most emergency departments, the use of magnetic resonance (MR) imaging as a primary modality for the evaluation of a child with abdominal pain remains impractical due to its high cost, its limited availability, and the frequent need for sedation. Ultrasonography (US) does not involve ionizing radiation and, unlike MR imaging, is relatively inexpensive, is widely available, and does not require sedation. Another major advantage of US in abdominal imaging is that it allows dynamic assessment of bowel peristalsis and compressibility. Delayed diagnosis of any of the aforementioned disease processes can lead to serious morbidity and, in some cases, death. The ability to diagnose or exclude disease with US should be part of a core radiology skill set for any practice that includes a pediatric population.

Pneumatic reduction of intussusception: factors affecting outcome in Thailand

Background: Pneumatic reduction has become a therapeutic method for intussusception instead of surgery. It is more successful than barium reduction, but it depends on how much the operator is familiar with the method and equipment.

Objective: Determine success rate and recurrent rate of intussusception and factors affecting outcome of pneumatic reduction in Thailand.

Materials and methods: Fifty-eight children with 73 numbers of intussusception who underwent pneumatic reduction at Songklanagarind Hospital, Thailand between January 2002 and March 2007 were retrospectively reviewed. Age, sex, clinical parameters, physical examination, imaging findings, and reduction technique were evaluated.

Results: Overall success rate was 54 out of the 73 episodes and recurrent rate was 10 out of 58 patients with intussusception. Long duration of symptom, rectal bleeding, dehydration, and leukocytosis significantly affected poor outcome. Radiographic findings of gut obstruction and ascites as well as sonographic findings of thickened colonic wall, trapped fluid between intussusceptum and intussuscipien, and small bowel obstruction could also predict the poor outcome.

Conclusion: Many factors from clinical presentation, plain radiographic, and sonographic findings affect poor outcome of pneumatic reduction. However, it can be performed unless peritonitis and sepsis/shock are present.

Radiographic findings in the diagnosis of pediatric ileocolic intussusception: comparison to a control population

Several previous studies have evaluated the usefulness of plain abdominal radiographs for the diagnosis of pediatric intussusception, although investigation of the most specific clues to diagnose intussusception has not been studied alone. The 3 most specific findings of intussusception include intraluminal mass or intussusceptum, nonvisualized air-filled cecum, and obscured liver margin or right upper-quadrant mass. In this study, a retrospective review of 73 known cases of intussusception with age- and sex-matched controls was performed. The cases were reviewed by 2 blinded, board-certified pediatric radiologists to aid in the determination of sensitivity and specificity. The sensitivity and specificity of plain radiographs to correctly diagnose ileocolic intussusception in pediatric patients compared with a control population were 77% and 97%, using a 50% or greater receiver operating characteristic curve cutoff.

Diagnosis of pediatric intussusception by an emergency physician-performed bedside ultrasound: a case report

The past decade has seen a rapid evolution in the use of bedside ultrasound (BUS) in the emergency department (ED). In addition, it has been increasingly used in the pediatric population for a variety of indications. As ED BUS is a relatively new modality in pediatric emergency medicine, novel indications are increasingly being recognized. We report a case of a 9-month-old infant who presented with signs and symptoms suggestive of intussusception, whose diagnosis was made using ED BUS in the pediatric ED. Knowledge of the sonographic appearance of intussusception can aid the emergency physician in the prompt diagnosis of this condition while potentially minimizing complications that may result from a delay in diagnosis.

Pneumatic reduction of childhood intussusception. Is prediction of failure important?

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

Exclusion criteria for enema reduction of intussusception are still a matter of debate. The current study aimed to search for risk factors and to design and evaluate a predictive model of air enema failure.

METHODS

The design was a cross-sectional study. The study was conducted at a tertiary university hospital. The participants were 164 children (mean [SD] age of 11.6 [10.7] months) with intestinal intussusception. The intervention done was pneumatic reduction only contraindicated in case of peritonitis and/or sepsis. For main outcome measures, logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the contribution of clinical parameters (age, sex, weight, clinical evolution, temperature, rectal bleeding, white blood cell count, and neutrophils) to predict the risk of enema failure. To evaluate the discriminating power of the model, a receiver operating characteristic curve was constructed, and the effectiveness at different cutoffs was calculated.

RESULTS

Overall efficacy was 85%; manual reduction was performed in 12 (7.3%) cases, and there were 9 (6.5%) recurrences. Multivariable analysis adjusted for age and sex revealed that delayed diagnosis (evolution >24 hours) and raised neutrophils (%) were associated with failure: odds ratio of 11.52 (95% CI, 3.73-35.54) and 1.06 (95% CI, 1.02-1.11), respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.826 (95% CI, 0.740-0.912). At the best cutoff (0.15), the positive predictive value was 35% and the negative 93%. At the cutoff of 0.50, the positive predictive value was 70% and the negative 87%; the sensitivity was 29%.

CONCLUSIONS

The efficacy and safety of pneumatic reduction in childhood intussusception was confirmed. Delayed diagnosis and neutrophils significantly predict outcome. Despite consistent high negative predictive values, the model has low effectiveness in predicting enema failure and may not be clinically relevant; there is no rationale for stricter exclusion criteria.

Current radiological management of intussusception in children

Intussusception is the most common abdominal emergency situation in infants and small children. There has been great progress in diagnostic and therapeutic management of intussusception. Ultrasound (US) has been shown to be the first-choice imaging technique in diagnosing intussusception for reasons of high accuracy, simultaneous exclusion of differential diagnoses, and disclosure of additional pathologies. Controversial opinions exist worldwide concerning the nonoperative treatment of intussusception in infants and children. Pneumatic reduction under fluoroscopic guidance and hydrostatic reduction under US monitoring are the preferred techniques. The aim should be a success rate of at least 90% in idiopathic intussusception. This review summarizes different types of intussusception and outlines diagnostic aspects as well as several treatment concepts.