Management of narrower anastomotic colonic strictures. Case report and proposal technique

Management of narrower (<5-mm) colonic anastomotic stricture mainly is performed endoscopically by repeated balloon dilation often ineffectively. The use of metal self-expanding stents in the malignant and benign stricture of the large bowel has been suggested only recently, and is still being debated. In this report we propose a single-stage procedure that we developed to manage narrower anastomotic colonic stricture. A 60-year-old man 2 years previously had undergone surgery for perforated sigmoid diverticulitis by means of Hartmann's procedure. He was submitted to two mechanical recanalization attempts, both of which failed with dehiscence of anastomoses. He reached us with a significant stricture of the colorectal anastomoses (smaller than 5 mm in diameter) and a diversion ileostomy. After two endoscopic balloon dilations, we observed the relapse of the anastomotic stricture, so we decided to draw up another strategy. We performed a dilation with a TTS balloon, leaving a metallic self-expanding covered stent in situ for 3 months. The aim was to achieve the definitive healing of the anastomotic scar tissue at the desired diameter. We removed the stent during the ileostomy closure. At the time of this writing, 18 months of follow-up evaluation, the patient defecates without any problem