Article Text
Summary
The authors present a rare case of a 71-year-old man presenting with large bowel obstruction after attempted colonoscopy. The procedure was impossible to complete due to a tight sigmoid stricture and the patient presented with an acute abdomen the following day. He was managed conservatively and discharged before returning for an elective laparoscopic sigmoid colectomy. The potential differentials of an acute abdomen post-colonoscopy are discussed and the literature reviewed on this rare complication. Finally, the authors review whether there is pressure on endoscopists to ‘complete’ colonoscopies (by achieving caecal intubation) based on regulatory indices in quality, and how this might have to be disregarded in unfavourable circumstances.
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Footnotes
Contributors RN and LP involved in (1) conception and design, acquisition of data or analysis and interpretation of data; (2) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; (3) final approval of the version published and (4) agreement to be accountable for the article and to ensure that all questions regarding the accuracy or integrity of the article are investigated and resolved.
Competing interests None declared.
Patient consent Obtained.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.