Percutaneous trans-bladder drainage of a pelvic abscess caused by sigmoid diverticulitis: Two case reports

Sigmoid diverticulitis can potentially lead to the development of pelvic abscesses. Mortality rate from intra-abdominal abscesses is as high as 35%, and patients with diverticulitis complicated by an abscess are at a high risk of recurrent diverticulitis. Recently, image-guided drainage has been performed using computed tomography or ultrasonography for the treatment of pelvic abscesses. Standard radiological pelvic abscess image-guided drainage methods consist of transabdominal, transgluteal, or cranio-caudal puncture approaches. However, these standard approaches have technical limitations due to intrapelvic organ structures. Therefore, we performed image-guided drainage using a percutaneous trans-bladder approach with a simpler 1-step puncture method and a less invasive 7-Fr drainage catheter in 2 cases of a 72-year-old female and a 53-year-old female with relapsed pelvic abscesses complicated by sigmoid diverticulitis due to difficulties involving the standard approach. The abscesses in both cases disappeared on follow-up computed tomography scans, demonstrating no pelvic abscess recurrence. Our results showed that trans-bladder image-guided drainage is an effective alternative method for treating pelvic abscesses.

Diverticulitis with abscess formation: Outcomes of non-operative management and nomogram for predicting emergency surgery: The Diplicab Study Collaborative Group

BACKGROUND

To assess short- and long-term outcomes from non-surgical management of diverticulitis with abscess formation and to develop a nomogram to predict emergency surgery.

METHODS

This nationwide retrospective cohort study was performed in 29 Spanish referral centers, including patients with a first episode of a diverticular abscess (modified Hinchey Ib-II) from 2015 to 2019. Emergency surgery, complications, and recurrent episodes were analyzed. Regression analysis was used to assess risk factors, and a nomogram for emergency surgery was designed.

RESULTS

Overall, 1,395 patients were included (1,078 Hinchey Ib and 317 Hinchey II). Most (1,184, 84.9%) patients were treated with antibiotics without percutaneous drainage, and 194 (13.90%) patients required emergency surgery during admission. Percutaneous drainage (208 patients) was associated with a lower risk of emergency surgery in patients with abscesses of ≥5 cm (19.9% vs 29.3%, P = .035; odds ratio 0.59 [0.37-0.96]). The multivariate analysis showed that immunosuppression treatment, C-reactive protein (odds ratio: 1.003; 1.001-1.005), free pneumoperitoneum (odds ratio: 3.01; 2.04-4.44), Hinchey II (odds ratio: 2.15; 1.42-3.26), abscess size 3 to 4.9 cm (odds ratio: 1.87; 1.06-3.29), abscess size ≥5 cm (odds ratio: 3.62; 2.08-6.32), and use of morphine (odds ratio: 3.68; 2.29-5.92) were associated with emergency surgery. A nomogram was developed with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.81 (95% confidence interval: 0.77-0.85).

CONCLUSION

Percutaneous drainage must be considered in abscesses ≥5 cm to reduce emergency surgery rates; however, there are insufficient data to recommend it in smaller abscesses. The use of the nomogram could help the surgeon develop a targeted approach.

German guideline diverticular disease/diverticulitis: Part II: Conservative, interventional and surgical management

Diverticulosis and diverticular disease are ranked among the most common gastroenterological diseases and conditions. While for many years diverticulitis was found to be mainly an event occurring in the elder population, more recent work in epidemiology demonstrates increasing frequency in younger subjects. In addition, there is a noticeable trend towards more complicated disease. This may explain the significant increase in hospitalisations observed in recent years. It is not a surprise that the number of scientific studies addressing the clinical and socioeconomic consequences in the field is increasing. As a result, diagnosis and conservative as well as surgical management have changed in recent years. Diverticulosis, diverticular disease and diverticulitis are a complex entity and apparently an interdisciplinary challenge. To meet theses considerations the German Societies for Gastroenterology and Visceral Surgery decided to create joint guidelines addressing all aspects in a truely interdisciplinary fashion. The aim of the guideline is to summarise and to evaluate the current state of knowledge on diverticulosis and diverticular disease and to develop statements as well as recommendations to all physicians involved in the management of patients with diverticular disease.

Failure of nonoperative management in patients with acute diverticulitis complicated by abscess: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to assess failure rates following nonoperative management of acute diverticulitis complicated by abscess and trends thereof.

METHOD

Pubmed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were systematically searched. Nonoperative management was defined as a combination of nil per os, IV fluids, IV antibiotics, CT scan-guided percutaneous drainage, and total parenteral nutrition. The primary endpoint was failure of nonoperative management defined as persistent or worsening abscess and/or sepsis, development of new complications, such as peritonitis, ileus, or colocutaneous fistula, and urgent surgery within 30-90 days of index admission. Data were stratified by three arbitrary time intervals: 1986-2000, 2000-2010, and after 2010. The primary outcome was calculated for those groups and compared.

RESULTS

Thirty-eight of forty-four eligible studies published between 1986 and 2019 were included in the quantitative synthesis of data (n = 2598). The pooled rate of failed nonoperative management was 16.4% (12.6%, 20.2%) at 90 days. In studies published in 2000-2010 (n = 405), the pooled failure rate was 18.6% (10.5%, 26.7%). After 2000 (n = 2140), the pooled failure rate was 15.3% (10.7%, 20%). The difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.725). After controlling for heterogeneity in the definition of failure of nonoperative management, subgroup analysis yielded the pooled rate of failure of 21.8% (16.1%, 27.4%).

CONCLUSION

This meta-analysis found that failure rates following nonoperative management of acute diverticulitis complicated by abscess did not significantly decrease over the past three decades. The general quality of published data and the level and certainty of evidence produced were low.

Acute diverticulitis: old challenge, current trends, open questions

Acute diverticulitis (AD) is an increasing issue for health systems worldwide. As accuracy of clinical symptoms and laboratory examinations is poor, a pivotal role in preoperative diagnosis and severity assessment is played by CT scan. Several new classifications trying to adapt the intraoperative Hinchey's classification to preoperative CT findings have been proposed, but none really entered clinical practice. Treatment of early AD is mostly conservative (antibiotics) and may be administered in outpatients in selected cases. Larger abscesses (exceeding 3 to 5 cm) need percutaneous drainage, while management of stages 3 (purulent peritonitis) and 4 (fecal peritonitis) is difficult to standardize, as various approaches are nowadays suggested. Three situations are identified: situation A, stage 3 in stable/healthy patients, where various options are available, including conservative management, lavage/drainage and primary resection/anastomosis w/without protective stoma; situation B, stage 3 in unstable and/or unhealthy patients, and stage 4 in stable/healthy patients, where stoma-protected primary resection/anastomosis or Hartmann procedure should be performed; situation C, stage 4 in unstable and/or unhealthy patients, where Hartmann procedure or damage control surgery (resection without any anastomosis/stoma) are suggested. Late, elective sigmoid resection is less and less performed, as a new trend towards a patient-tailored management is spreading.

Systematic review of failure of nonoperative management in complicated sigmoid diverticulitis with abscess

PURPOSE

The aim of this systematic review was to determine the rates of failure following nonoperative management for acute sigmoid diverticulitis complicated by abscess.

METHODS

Pubmed and Medline were systematically searched by two independent researchers. Studies reporting outcomes of nonoperative management of diverticulitis with abscess revealed on CT scan were included. The endpoint of the study was failure of nonoperative management which included relapse and recurrence. Relapse was defined as development of additional complications such as peritonitis or obstruction that required urgent surgery during index admission or readmission within 30 days. Recurrence was defined as development of symptoms after an asymptomatic period of 30-90 days following nonoperative management. Nonoperative management included nil per os, intravenous fluids and antibiotics, CT-guided percutaneous drainage, and/or total parenteral nutrition.

RESULTS

Twenty-four of 844 studies yielded by literature search totaling 12,601 patients were eligible for inclusion. Pooled relapse rate was 18.9%. The pooled rate of recurrence of acute diverticulitis was found to be 25.5%. 60.9% of recurrences were complicated diverticulitis. Failure rate appeared to be significantly increased in patients undergoing percutaneous drainage for distant abscess as compared with pericolic abscess (51% vs. 18%; p = 0.0001).

CONCLUSION

The rate of failure of nonoperative management was 44.4%. The rate of relapse at 30 days following nonoperative management was at 18.9%. Distant abscesses were associated with significantly increased rates of relapse compared with pericolic abscesses. The rate of recurrence following nonoperative management was 25.5% at the mean follow-up of 38 months.

Long-term mortality and recurrence in patients treated for colonic diverticulitis with abscess formation: a nationwide register-based cohort study

PURPOSE

The study aimed to investigate long-term mortality, recurrence, and death related to recurrence for patients admitted with acute diverticulitis with abscess formation (Hinchey stage Ib-II).

METHODS

The cohort was identified by linking administrative registers for all Danish citizens in years 2000-2012. Patients were identified from ICD-10 discharge codes and stratified according to treatment (antibiotics, percutaneous abscess drainage, or surgery).

RESULTS

From 6,641,672 persons, 3148 patients were identified with acute diverticulitis with abscess formation. Survival was comparable between treatment groups with a 1-year survival of 81-83% and a 5-year survival of 66-67% (p = 0.66). Glucocorticoid usage prior to admission increased risk of mortality with hazard ratio 1.64 (95%CI 1.39-1.93), 1.77 (1.20-2.63), and 1.92 (1.07-3.44) for the antibiotics, drainage, and operative treatment group, respectively. Drainage treatment increased risk of recurrence with sub-distribution hazard (SDH) of 1.52 (1.19-1.95) and operative treatment decreased risk with a SDH of 0.55 (0.32-0.93), both compared with antibiotic treatment (p = 0.0001). Recurrence occurred in 23.6% (18.5-30.1%) of patients in the drainage group, 15.5% (13.9-17.3%) in the antibiotics group, and 9.1% (5.1-16.1%) in the operative group. Recurrence-related mortality was 2.0% (0.9-4.4%) for the drainage group, 1.1% (0.7-1.8%) for the antibiotics group, and 0.6% (0.1-4.3%) for the operative group (p = 0.24). Most recurrences and recurrence-related mortality occurred within the first year after primary admission.

CONCLUSIONS

This study with complete national data revealed a high mortality and recurrence rate after diverticular abscesses. Survival was comparable between treatment groups, but patients treated with drainage had significantly higher risk of recurrence.

International Variation in Emergency Operation Rates for Acute Diverticulitis: Insights into Healthcare Value

BACKGROUND

International comparison of outcomes of surgical diseases has become a global focus because of widespread concern over surgical quality, rising costs and the value of healthcare. Acute diverticulitis is a common disease potentially amenable to optimization of strategies for operative intervention. The aim was to compare the emergency operative intervention rates for acute diverticulitis in USA, England and Australia.

METHODS

Unplanned admissions for acute diverticulitis were found from an international administrative dataset between 2008 and 2014 for hospitals in USA, England and Australia. The primary outcome measured was emergency operative intervention rate. Secondary outcomes included inpatient mortality and percutaneous drainage rate. Multivariable analysis was performed after development of a weighted comorbidity scoring system.

RESULTS

There were 15,150 unplanned admissions for acute diverticulitis. The emergency operative intervention rates were 16, 13 and 10% for USA, England and Australia. The percutaneous drainage rate was highest in USA at 10%, while the mortality rate was highest in England at 2.8%. The propensity for emergency operative intervention was higher in USA (OR 1.45, p < 0.001) and England (OR 1.49, p < 0.001) than in Australia. The risk of 7-day mortality was higher in England than in Australia (OR 2.79, p < 0.001). Percutaneous drainage was associated with reduced 7-day mortality risk.

CONCLUSION

Australia has a lower propensity for emergency operative intervention, while England has a greater risk of mortality for acute diverticulitis. International variations raise the issue of healthcare value in terms of differing resource use and outcomes.

Laparoscopic approaches to complicated diverticulitis

BACKGROUND

The objective of this article is to review the evolving role of laparoscopic surgery in the treatment of complicated diverticulitis.

PURPOSE

The authors attempted to give readers a concise insight into the evidence available in the English language literature. This study does not offer a systematic review of the topic, rather it highlights the role of laparoscopy in the treatment of complicated diverticulitis.

CONCLUSIONS

New level 1 evidence suggest that observation rather than elective resection following nonoperative management of diverticulitis with abscess and/or extraluminal air is not below the standard of care. Implementation of nonoperative management may result in increased prevalence of sigmoid strictures.

Is the Failure of Laparoscopic Peritoneal Lavage Predictable in Hinchey III Diverticulitis Management?

BACKGROUND

Laparoscopic peritoneal lavage is an alternative to sigmoid resection in Hinchey III diverticulitis (generalized purulent peritonitis). The main limitation of laparoscopic peritoneal lavage is the higher rate of reoperation for persistent sepsis in comparison with sigmoid resection.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of the current study was to identify risk factors for laparoscopic peritoneal lavage failure in patients who have Hinchey III diverticulitis.

DESIGN

This was a retrospective multicenter study.

SETTINGS

The study was conducted in 3 clinical sites in France.

PATIENTS

From 2006 to 2015, all consecutive patients undergoing emergent surgery for diverticulitis were reviewed. All patients operated on with laparoscopic peritoneal lavage for laparoscopically confirmed Hinchey III diverticulitis were included.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

The main outcome was laparoscopic peritoneal lavage failure, defined as reoperation or death at 30 postoperative days.

RESULTS

A series of 71 patients (43 men, mean age 58 ± 15 years) were operated on with laparoscopic peritoneal lavage for Hinchey III diverticulitis. Laparoscopic peritoneal lavage failed in 14 (20%) of them: 1 died and 13 underwent reoperations. No major complication (Dindo-Clavien score ≥3) occurred after reoperation. Immunosuppressive drugs (p = 0.01) and ASA grade ≥3 (p = 0.02) were associated with laparoscopic peritoneal lavage failure after univariate analysis. Multivariate analysis identified only immunosuppressive drug intake (steroids or chemotherapy for cancer) as an independent predictive factor. Mean length of stay was 14.9 days (5-67). At the end of the 30 first postoperative days, 12 (17%) patients had a stoma.

LIMITATIONS

The study was limited by its retrospective nature and the small size of the cohort.

CONCLUSION

Our results highlight immunosuppressive drug intake as a major risk factor for laparoscopic peritoneal lavage failure in patients who have Hinchey III diverticulitis. Immunosuppression and severe comorbidities (ASA ≥3) should be considered when selecting a surgical option in patients with Hinchey III diverticulitis. See Video Abstract at http://links.lww.com/DCR/A423.

Treatment of patients with acute colonic diverticulitis complicated by abscess formation: A systematic review

PURPOSE

This study aimed to systematically review the literature and present the evidence on outcomes after treatment for acute diverticulitis with abscess formation. Secondly, the paper aimed to compare different treatment options.

METHODS

PubMed, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library were searched. Two authors screened the records independently, initially on title and abstract and subsequently on full-text basis. Articles describing patients treated acutely for Hinchey Ib and II were included. Results were presented by treatment, classified as non-operative (percutaneous abscess drainage (PAD), antibiotics, or unspecified non-operative strategy), PAD, antibiotics, or acute surgery. The outcomes of interest were treatment failure, short-term mortality, and recurrence.

RESULTS

Of 1723 articles, 42 studies were included, describing 8766 patients with Hinchey Ib-II diverticulitis. Observational studies were the only available evidence. Treatment generally failed for 20% of patients, regardless of non-operative treatment choice. Abscesses with diameters less than 3 cm were sufficiently treated with antibiotics alone, possibly as outpatient treatment. Of patients treated non-operatively, 25% experienced a recurrent episode during long-term follow-up. When comparing PAD to antibiotic treatment, it appeared that PAD lead to recurrence less often (15.9% vs. 22.2%). Patients undergoing acute surgery had increased risk of death (12.1% vs. 1.1%) compared to patients treated non-operatively. Of patients undergoing PAD, 2.5% experienced procedure-related complications and 15.5% needed adjustment or replacement of the drain.

CONCLUSIONS

Observational studies with unmatched patients were the best available evidence which limited comparability and resulted in risk of selection bias and confounding by indication. Diverticular abscesses with diameters less than 3 cm might be sufficiently treated with antibiotics, while the best treatment for larger abscesses remains uncertain. Acute surgery should be reserved for critically ill patients failing non-operative treatment. Further research is needed to determine the best treatment for different sizes and types of diverticular abscesses, preferably randomized controlled trials.

Acute colonic diverticulitis: an update on clinical classification and management with MDCT correlation

Currently, the most commonly used classification of acute colonic diverticulitis (ACD) is the modified Hinchey classification, which corresponds to a slightly more complex classification by comparison with the original description. This modified classification allows to categorize patients with ACD into four major categories (I, II, III, IV) and two additional subcategories (Ia and Ib), depending on the severity of the disease. Several studies have clearly demonstrated the impact of this classification for determining the best therapeutic approach and predicting perioperative complications for patients who need surgery. This review provides an update on the classification of ACD along with a special emphasis on the corresponding MDCT features of the different categories and subcategories. This modified Hinchey classification should be known by emergency physicians, radiologists, and surgeons in order to improve patient care and management because each category has a specific therapeutic approach.

Short-term mortality, readmission, and recurrence in treatment of acute diverticulitis with abscess formation: a nationwide register-based cohort study

PURPOSE

The aim of the study was to investigate short-term mortality, readmission, and recurrence in a national cohort of patients with Hinchey Ib-II diverticulitis.

METHODS

The retrospective cohort-investigation was conducted using a database consisting of the entire Danish population (n = 6,641,672) in year 2000-2012, formed by linking the Danish Registers. Patients admitted with acute Hinchey Ib-II diverticulitis were identified from ICD-10 discharge codes and stratified according to treatment into an operative, drainage, and antibiotics group. The primary outcome was 30-day mortality from admission, secondary outcomes were mortality, readmission, and recurrence within 30 days post-discharge. The study was reported using RECORD guidelines.

RESULTS

A total of 3148 eligible patients were identified. The cohort had a mean age of 65.1 year, 25.6 % had previously been admitted with diverticulitis, and 48.1 % had registered comorbidities. Within 30 days from admission, 8.7 % of the patients died. Of patients discharged, 2.5 % died, 23.8 % was readmitted, and 5.9 % was readmitted due to diverticulitis within 30 days from discharge. In multivariate analyses, increasing age was associated with mortality at odds-ratio (95 % CI) 1.10 (1.09-1.12). Previous complicated and uncomplicated diverticulitis reduced mortality with odds-ratio 0.50 (0.33-0.76) and 0.73 (0.58-0.92), while uncomplicated diverticulitis also increased risk of recurrence with odds-ratio 1.51 (1.24-1.84). Glucocorticoid usage was associated with mortality with odds-ratio 1.49 (1.23-1.81) and readmission with odds-ratio 2.91 (1.24-6.80).

CONCLUSION

Acute diverticulitis with abscess formation is a severe and life-threatening condition. Direct comparisons of treatment groups were not possible due to possible confounding by indication.

Percutaneous Drainage of a Diverticular Abscess Should be Limited to Two Attempts for a Resilient Diverticular Abscess

Management of a resilient diverticular abscess poses a big challenge. Currently there are no guidelines for the number of percutaneous drainages to be performed in resilient diverticular abscesses before attempting surgery. All patients (n = 117) who presented with a computed tomography scan-proven diverticular abscess from July 2008 to June 2011 were studied. They were divided into four groups based on the number of percutaneous drainages they underwent for their diverticular abscess: six patients underwent three or more drainages, nine patients underwent two drainages, 27 patients had one drainage, and 75 patients had no drainage. Readjustment, flushing, and upgrading size of the drain were not considered as separate drainage procedures. The size of abscess cavity was significantly higher for the patients who had three or more drainages (mean 8 cm, P < 0.001). A Hartmann's procedure was performed in the majority of patients in the three or more drainage group (83%) but in decreasing frequency as the number of drainages performed dropped: two drainage group (44%), one drainage group (15%), and no drainage group (19%). There was a significantly higher preoperative hospital stay for drainage and antibiotics in the patients from the three or more drainage group ( P < 0.001). Patients with a resilient diverticular abscess are very likely to undergo a Hartmann's procedure after two attempted drainages. By performing additional percutaneous drainages in an attempt to avoid ostomy, patients are at an increased risk of sepsis and peritonitis with prolonged antibiotics and increased healthcare costs. We recommend limiting percutaneous drainage procedures to two attempts to cool down a resilient diverticular abscess before definitive surgery.