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Acute Diverticulitis: Imaging and Percutaneous Drainage

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Multidisciplinary Approaches to Common Surgical Problems

Abstract

Acute diverticulitis attacks are frequently seen in modern healthcare facilities. The disease presents with a spectrum of symptoms from mild inflammation and abdominal pain to life-threating bowel perforation, sepsis, and peritonitis. Clinical evaluation and medical imaging play an important role in stratifying the disease into different categories based on severity which help guide specific therapies ranging from supportive outpatient care to image-guided percutaneous drainage, to emergent surgery, and to intensive care unit admissions. Antibiotic selection plays an important role in the treatment and prevention of infection and sepsis. Percutaneous drainage is a low-risk technique to achieve source control in most patients with diverticular abscess formation, facilitating a more rapid recovery. Historically many patients with complicated diverticular disease were treated with surgery; however, a better understanding of the pathophysiology and innovative therapies such as percutaneous drainage has allowed patients to be stabilized in the acute setting and undergo a one-stage elective surgery later on.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Interventional Radiology, Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, HI, USA

    J. Matthew Meadows

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  1. J. Matthew Meadows
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Correspondence to J. Matthew Meadows .

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  1. Department of Surgery, Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, HI, USA

    Robert Lim

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Meadows, J.M. (2019). Acute Diverticulitis: Imaging and Percutaneous Drainage. In: Lim, R. (eds) Multidisciplinary Approaches to Common Surgical Problems. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-12823-4_22

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-12823-4_22

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