A surgical case of severe necrotic obstructive colitis due to sigmoid colon cancer

Abstract

Severe necrotic obstructive colitis is extremely rare. A 71-year-old man was admitted to our hospital due to abdominal pain. Abdominal computed tomography (CT) showed a mechanical ileus due to a tumor in the sigmoid colon. The patient was conservatively treated by a long intestinal decompression tube. However, he suffered a shock 16 hours later after the admission and underwent an emergency operation. On exploration of the intra-abdominal cavity, the color of serosa from the cecum to the sigmoid colon changed to brown. Total resection of the colon was performed. Histopathological examination revealed that the tumor was a well differentiated adenocarcinoma and the whole colon proximal to the tumor became necrotic. It is important to recognize the pathology of this disease for the proper surgical treatment.