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Background
Diversion of the fecal stream with or without primary repair has been the mainstay
of therapy for rectal injuries. Because primary repair has replaced colostomy as the
treatment of choice for most colon injuries, we reviewed our experience with primary
repair of rectal injuries in order to determine if primary repair without diversion
is a feasible option in selected patients.
Materials and Methods
All traumatic rectal injuries over the past 48 months were reviewed for mechanism
of injury, diagnosis, treatment, and outcome.
Results
Thirty consecutive patients with extra-peritoneal rectal injuries were identified.
Six of the 30 patients underwent primary repair without diversion. Five were repaired
transanally, and 1 was repaired at celiotomy. There was no morbidity related to the
rectal repair in patients who underwent primary repair without diversion, and there
were no deaths.
Conclusions
Based on a small number of patients, these data suggest that primary repair of rectal
injuries in selected patients may be feasible. Further prospective investigation is
needed to determine which patients may be successfully treated in this fashion.
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Article info
Footnotes
**Presented at the 48th Annual Meeting of the Southwestern Surgical Congress, Scottsdale, Arizona, April 28–May 1, 1996.
Identification
Copyright
© 1996 Excerpta Medica, Inc. All rights reserved. Published by Elsevier Inc.
