Laparoscopic resection of perforated Meckel's diverticulum in a patient with clinical symptoms of acute appendicitis

Abstracts

We report the laparoscopic resection of a perforated Meckel's diverticulum (MD) found in a 14-year-old boy who presented with abdominal pain and nausea. There was rebound tenderness in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen, which appeared suspicious for acute appendicitis. The patient was referred to the operating room, and laparoscopic appendectomy was performed. With the appendix showing no macroscopic signs of inflammation, laparoscopy was continued and a perforated MD was identified 50 cm proximal to the ileocecal valve. The findings included pus and localized peritonitis between the ileal loops adjacent to the perforation site. The diverticulum was longitudinally resected with an Endo-Gia stapler. The histopathologic workup confirmed the diagnosis of a perforated MD. The patient completely recovered and was discharged 8 days after the procedures. At this writing, he is completely asymptomatic 6 months later. We conclude from our observation that laparoscopic resection of a perforated MD can be performed safely even when localized peritonitis is present. Inspection of the small intestine should be performed to exclude a symptomatic or perforated MD when the appendix does not show any signs of acute appendicitis.