Appendiceal intussusception requiring an ileocecectomy: a case report and comment on the optimal surgery

Appendiceal intussusception is very rare condition with an estimated incidence of 0.01%. Therefore, it is likely to be overlooked. In addition, making the diagnosis before or during surgery is very difficult.

A 60-year-old male who was referred to our gastroenterology center with cecal inflammation found during a colonoscopy. An abdominal computed tomography (CT) following endoscopy revealed a 5 × 2.5 × 4 cm mass-like lesion in the cecum around the ileocolic (IC) valve and appendiceal orifice. The main lesion seemed to be an inflammatory mass rather than a malignancy because it appeared to be an extraluminal or extramucosal lesion. Ultrasonography revealed diffuse wall thickening of the cecum around the appendiceal orifice that was suspicious for an inflammatory mass or a benign mass. A diagnosis was uncertain. The differential diagnosis included chronic appendicitis, appendiceal neoplasm such as appendiceal mucocele, low grade appendiceal mucinous neoplasm. The patient underwent a laparoscopic partial cecectomy. In the surgical field, there was a large mass in the appendiceal orifice. The cecum was partially resected, with care taken to preserve the IC valve. Final histopathological analysis of the surgical specimen revealed an appendiceal intussusception without any mucosal lesion of the appendix. Narrowing of the terminal ileum with a small bowel obstruction and stenosis of the IC valve occurred postoperatively. Therefore, ileocecectomy was performed via a laparoscopic approach. The patient was discharged 11 days after the second surgery without another significant postoperative complication.

We report a rare case of appendiceal intussusception that required reoperation due to ileocolic valve stenosis. If the correct diagnosis of appendiceal intussusception is made, we can select an appropriate surgical treatment based on the classification of appendiceal intussusceptions.