PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Akiyo Matsumoto AU - Takahiko Akao AU - Hiroshi Matsumoto AU - Naoki Kobayashi AU - Makoto Kamiya TI - What is the onset mechanism of internal hernia after vertebral body fracture? A case of internal hernia secondary to traumatic vertebral fracture AID - 10.1136/bcr-2020-241005 DP - 2021 Sep 01 TA - BMJ Case Reports PG - e241005 VI - 14 IP - 9 4099 - http://casereports.bmj.com/content/14/9/e241005.short 4100 - http://casereports.bmj.com/content/14/9/e241005.full SO - BMJ Case Reports2021 Sep 01; 14 AB - A 67-year-old man who had been pinned between a basket crane and a tree complained of severe pain in his lower back and a decreased appetite. Laparotomy after decompressing the gastrointestinal tract revealed incarceration of an ileal loop within a fractured third lumbar vertebra. The damaged bowel was resected, and an end-to-end anastomosis was performed. Once the patient’s condition had stabilised, posterior lumbar fixation was performed. There were no abdominal complications or lower limb neurological deficits during the follow-up period. Enhanced CT and MRI had been helpful in making the diagnoses. Histopathological examination revealed the aetiology of the traumatic incarceration: the intestine had been pinched as the disc space closed, and the body attempted to return to its original state by exerting countertraction.