[Vesico-intestinal fistulae]

Abstract

Vesico-intestinal fistulae were observed in 14 patients within a period of 10 years (vesico-colonic: ten; vesico-rectal: two; vesico-ileal and vesico-rectal-ileal: one each). The causes were diverticulitis in five, carcinoma of the sigmoid in two, radiation damage after prostatic or cervical carcinoma in two, and Crohn's disease, abscess of Douglas's pouch after perforated appendicitis, ileal carcinoma, sarcoma of the pelvis, and ovarian carcinoma, one each. Pneumaturia, faecaluria and dysuria were the most frequent symptoms, treatment-resistant cystitis was present in three. Cystoscopy, intravenous pyelogram, retrograde cystogram, barium meal, barium swallow with follow-through, and rectosigmoidoscopy proved to be the best methods of diagnosis. Four patients had multiple operations, three one operation, with a cure in all. In the neoplastic fistulae the underlying carcinoma could not be radically operated on: colostomy or colostomy with palliative resection was performed. In four of these the fistulae then closed, once it remained open. One woman with a vesicorectal fistula due to ovarian carcinoma died of tumor cachexia 16 days after a colostomy had been made.