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Case Reports
. 2017 Sep 7:2017:bcr2017220791.
doi: 10.1136/bcr-2017-220791.

Bowel perforation presenting three months after suprapubic catheter insertion

Thomas Stonier  1 , Nick Simson  1 , Elizabeth Wilson  2 , Konstantinos Eleftherios Stergios  3
Affiliations
Case Reports

Bowel perforation presenting three months after suprapubic catheter insertion

Thomas Stonier et al. BMJ Case Rep. .

Abstract

An 82-year-old male with multiple comorbidities, including previous laparotomies, had a suprapubic catheter (SPC) inserted under guidance with ultrasound and a flexible cystoscope. Three months following the procedure, having returned for a flexible cystoscopy for ongoing bladder pain syndrome, he became peritonitic postoperatively.A CT scan and subsequent laparotomy confirmed the SPC to be passing through a section of terminal ileum. The bowel was resected and he recovered well after a long hospital admission. A literature search found this delayed presentation of bowel perforation following SPC insertion to be rare, with only a few other cases reported. In particular, previous abdominal surgery increases the risk of this complication. This case serves as a reminder of the rare but potentially significant risk of SPC insertion and unusually highlights that this may not present immediately.

Keywords: catheterisation / catheter care; general surgery; urological surgery.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A slice from the CT abdomen and pelvis showing the suprapubic catheter perforating the terminal ileum and entering the bladder.
Figure 2
Figure 2
A diagram representing the CT findings. Copyright and with permission from Ahmed et al.
Figure 3
Figure 3
A photograph taken in theatre showing the catheter entering the skin (bottom left of image), perforating the terminal ileum through a fibrosed track and entering the bladder (out of picture in centre of image).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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