Strategy for Removing an Impacted Enterolith using Double-Balloon Enteroscopy in Crohn’s Disease

Abstract

An enterolith in Crohn’s disease is an uncommon but serious condition because it can cause intestinal obstruction. Endoscopic treatment to remove the enterolith is attempted first, but is sometimes difficult owing to poor accessibility of the endoscope. In such cases, surgical treatment is inevitable. We successfully overcame poor accessibility and removed an enterolith using double-balloon enteroscopy. We describe our method below and suggest several helpful techniques.

Keywords

• crohn’s disease
• enterolith
• intestinal obstruction
• double-balloon enteroscopy