Premium
SMALL BOWEL OBSTRUCTIONS: THE CASE FOR INVESTIGATION FOR OCCULT LARGE BOWEL CARCINOMA
Author(s) -
Stelmach W. S.,
Cass A. J.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.111
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1445-2197
pISSN - 0004-8682
DOI - 10.1111/j.1445-2197.1989.tb01493.x
Subject(s) - medicine , occult , bowel obstruction , gastroenterology , colorectal cancer , large bowel obstruction , incidence (geometry) , cancer , carcinoma , colonic carcinoma , colonic cancer , general surgery , surgery , pathology , physics , alternative medicine , optics
Over the last century, the incidence of adhesive small bowel obstructions has increased as the rate of operative management of abdominal conditions has risen. Concurrently, the rate of colonic cancer has also increased. One of the ways in which colonic cancer may present is as an isolated small bowel obstruction. Three cases of resolving small bowel obstruction secondary to occult carcinoma are presented and a survey of the literature is made. The conclusion is that all patients who present with a small bowel obstruction, which resolves, and who are in the cancer age group should be investigated for colonic cancer, especially when the putative causative operation was carried out some years previously; otherwise, large bowel tumours presenting as an isolated small bowel obstruction may pass undiagnosed.