Open diverticulectomy in a patient with a giant symptomatic retro-pancreatic duodenal diverticulum. A case report

Although often incidentally found, diverticular disease of the small bowel and duodenum may generate complications and impose surgical treatment. Diagnosis of small bowel diverticulosis is difficult because the clinical picture is usually ambiguous. We report a case of diverticulosis of the whole intestine including a giant symptomatic retro-pancreatic duodenal diverticulum in a 74-year-old patient who presented with recurrent episodes of abdominal pain, weight loss and intestinal obstruction. The diagnosis was made by MRI enteroclysis and endoscopy. Open diverticulectomy with choledochostomy and insertion of a T-tube was performed and resulted in a rapid improvement of the symptoms.