[Diverticulosis of the small bowel]

A 77-year-old man known with chronic abdominal complaints and a malabsorption syndrome presented with ileus, peritonitis and air in the abdominal cavity. Surgery showed perforation of a jejunal diverticulum and extensive small bowel diverticulosis. The pathologic segment was surgically removed but the patient died afterwards of septic shock, diffuse intravascular coagulation and multi-organ failure. Small bowel diverticulosis has a prevalence of 0.3-2.5% and symptoms are present only in the minority of the cases. Apart from bacterial overgrowth and malabsorption, complications include bleeding, mechanical obstruction, volvulus and perforation. Diagnosis is difficult and mostly made by double-contrast radiology of the small bowel or during laparotomy. Treatment can be conservative in most patients; only in case of severe and persistent symptoms or complications like ileus, bleeding, perforation or volvulus, resection of the affected bowel segment is indicated.