A rare complication of colonic diverticulosis: giant diverticulum. Case report and overview of pathophysiology, diagnosis and therapeutic options

Abstract

A rare complication of diverticulosis of the colon is giant colonic diverticulum, an entity first described by Bonvin in 1946. The experience of any surgeon with this problem is at the most still small and reported management in the literature has been varied. We present the case of a 84-year-old woman presenting with a painless abdominal mass and constipation. A 30 x 10 cm gas-filled cyst was discovered on abdominal X-ray and CT examination. Furthermore, we provide an overview of pathophysiology, diagnosis and therapeutic options.