Large Bowel Obstruction

Abstract

As the mean age of our population gradually rises, one can expect to see an increasing number of patients presenting to the emergency room with signs and Symptoms of a large bowel obstruetion. These include abdominal distention, cramps, and Obstipation. Associated Symptoms may also reflect the underlying disease responsible for the obstruetion, namely Cancer, diverticulitis, and sigmoid volvulus. Patients with Cancer may have a history of thinning of the stools, tenesmus, hematochezia, and weight loss. Those with diverticulitis may have a history of prior hospitalizations for this disorder during which time diagnostic tests might have revealed the presence of diverticular disease combined with angulation or stricturing of the sigmoid colon. Patients with volvulus may have a history of similar attacks of Obstipation which re-solved spontaneously; these patients also have a long history of consti-pation and altered bowel motility.