Diverticular disease of the colon in Ibadan, Nigeria

Eleven cases of diverticular disease of the colon were seen in a review of 603 adult barium enema examinations carried out over a 2-year period (January 1984-December 1985) at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria--a prevalence of 1.85%. All the cases were clinically unsuspected and the diagnosis was established only at barium examination. Five of the 11 patients presented with rectal bleeding, six with alteration in bowel habit, six with abdominal pain and associated fever and one with right iliac fossa pain and tenderness mimicking appendicitis. Although an uncommon disease in Nigerians, clinicians are urged to suspect diverticular disease in their differential diagnoses of disorder of the colon in Africans in order not to miss a potentially lethal but treatable condition.