Distended urinary bladder and diverticulum-a rare cause of large-bowel obstruction

Large bowel obstruction caused by urinary retention from benign prostate hyperplasia

Although large bowel obstruction is a common surgical emergency, its occurrence due to bladder distension is rarely reported in the literature. We report a case of large bowel obstruction caused by bladder distention secondary to benign prostate hyperplasia in a 67-year-old man. This case demonstrates a grossly distended urinary bladder compressing the rectosigmoid colon against the sacrum, presenting as a complete large bowel obstruction. Management consisted of transurethral urinary catheter insertion, which resulted in complete resolution of the bowel obstruction with drainage of a large amount of urine. Early recognition of the underlying etiology resulted in the expeditious treatment of large bowel obstruction.

Distended bladder presenting with constipation and venous obstruction: a case report

Introduction

A distended urinary bladder has been known to cause venous obstruction or rarely bowel obstruction. We report the first case in the literature in which urinary bladder distension presented with both venous obstruction and constipation. This is an unusual presentation of urinary bladder distension and serves to broaden our differential diagnoses for a patient with clinical venous obstruction.

Case presentation

An 83-year-old man of African descent presented with constipation and bilateral lower limb edema. A huge abdominal mass was evident which was a large, distended urinary bladder confirmed by computed tomography. Promptly after urethral catheterization, both constipation and lower limb edema resolved.

Conclusions

To the best of our knowledge distended urinary bladder causing both constipation and lower limb edema has never previously been reported. Analysis of the literature revealed several factors resulting in the patient's presentation. A high level of suspicion for urinary bladder distension must be maintained for prompt diagnosis and to avoid improper management.

Giant vesical diverticulum: A rare cause of defecation disturbance

Vesical diverticula frequently result from bladder outlet obstructions. However, giant vesical diverticula which cause acute abdomen or intestinal obstruction are very rare. Our review of the English medical literature found 3 cases of bladder diverticula which caused gastrointestinal symptoms. Here, we present a 57-year-old man with a giant diverticulum of the urinary bladder who complained of abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, constipation, no passage of gas or feces, and abdominal distension for 3 d. A 20 cm × 15 cm diverticulum was observed upon laparotomy. The colonic obstruction was secondary to external compression of the rectum against the sacrum by a distended vesical diverticulum. We performed a diverticulectomy and primary closure. Twelve months postoperatively, the patient had no difficulty with voiding or defecation.