Transvaginal evisceration after abdominal hysterectomy. Case report

Abstract

Evisceration is a condition in which abdominal viscera protrude through an unnatural hole, with an incidence between 0.03 and 4.1%. This condition often occurs after an abdominal hysterectomy (47%), vaginal hysterectomy (29.4%) or laparoscopic approach (23.6%). It has the highest incidence in hysterectomized postmenopausal women, while the time interval between surgery and complication onset may vary from a few days to a few years. Moreover, in most cases, the eviscerated organ is the small intestine, which represents a surgical emergency. Transvaginal evisceration is a rare entity and is scarcely documented; the case of a 81-year-old patient with a history of abdominal hysterectomy, who attended the medical service after eight hours of evolution of a clinical picture characterized by pelvic pain and ejection of the large intestine (sigmoid colon) through the vaginal canal is presented here. The patient underwent an exploratory laparotomy, Hartmann colostomy, rectopexy to the promontory and restitution of traffic in a subsequent procedure; after presenting a satisfactory evolution, she was discharged.

Keywords

• Visceral Prolapse
• Hysterectomy
• Colostomy