Abstract
Patients with complicated diverticulitis rarely present with extraperitoneal manifestations but the manifestation of subcutaneous emphysema appears even more seldom. We present the case of a patient with a history of diabetes and immunosuppression, who was admitted with sepsis in association with cellulitis and subcutaneous emphysema of the left groin. The absence of peritonism due to corticosteroid treatment, a history of a recent fall with an ilio- and ischio-pubic fracture and subcutaneous emphysema led to a delay in the diagnosis. The final diagnosis was a perforated diverticulitis in a patent inguinal canal, which was only revealed after surgery. The various complications of diverticulitis, including extraperitoneal manifestations, and associated microorganisms implicated in cellulitis and subcutaneous emphysema are briefly reviewed.
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de Vries, L., Knoepfli, AS., Konstantinidis, P. et al. Subcutaneous emphysema: a rare manifestation of a perforated diverticulitis in a patent inguinal canal. Hernia 11, 261–263 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10029-006-0172-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10029-006-0172-5