Gastrointestinal perforation: Serious incident that requires immediate emergency

This is an automatically translated article.

The article is professionally consulted by Master, Doctor Nguyen Thai Binh - Gastroenterologist - Department of General Surgery - Vinmec Ha Long International General Hospital. The doctor has more than 20 years of experience working in the specialty of abdominal surgery.
Gastrointestinal perforation is a serious incident that requires immediate medical attention. In order to promptly treat gastrointestinal perforation, when seeing symptoms of severe abdominal pain accompanied by fatigue, fever, lethargy, vomiting, bloody diarrhea... .

1. What is a gastrointestinal perforation?

Gastrointestinal perforation is a condition in which the wall of the digestive tract is perforated, causing the contents of the digestive tract to leak out. Gastrointestinal perforation is a serious event and requires prompt surgical emergency. Gastrointestinal rupture can occur in:
Esophagus: Esophageal perforation can lead to pleural infection or leak of the bronchial tubes and trachea. This is the most severe perforation in the gastrointestinal tract, which is difficult to treat and has a high mortality rate. Gastroduodenal: Gastroduodenal perforation leads to peritonitis, ulceration or perforation of the peritoneum. Intestinal: When the intestinal perforation, the fluids in the intestines leak out, causing inflammation and infection of the peritoneum.

2. Causes of gastrointestinal perforation

The phenomenon of perforation of a certain part of the abdomen has many causes. Specifically:
Esophageal:
Esophageal perforation due to wound, trauma from the outside in (wounds, complications of surgery), trauma from the inside out (the endoscopic process of oesophagoscopy perforation, foreign body). ) and spontaneous esophageal perforation (sudden increase in intraluminal pressure perforating the esophagus) Esophageal perforation due to esophageal disease. Stomach - duodenum:
Gastroduodenal perforation occurs due to bacterial infection; Duodenal perforation can occur due to inflammatory bowel syndrome which can cause gastric perforation. Intestinal:
Small bowel perforation occurs when the small intestine has a tumor or is twisted leading to intestinal distension and compression of blood vessels; trauma to the chest or lower abdomen. Perforation of the large intestine (colon) can be caused by an already inflamed, ulcerated, obstructed bowel due to torsion or cancer. Intestinal perforation can be caused by peptic ulcer disease, acute appendicitis, acute diverticulitis, and Meckel's diverticulum. Endoscopic intestinal perforation occurs when endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and colonoscopy or endoscopic biliary stenting are misplaced For people with chronic enteritis, intestinal perforation can occur at the same time. with acute ulcerative colitis or in patients with Crohn's disease. Intestinal perforation due to secondary colonic ischemia. Intestinal perforation due to malignancy, lymphoma; Benign tumors can still cause perforation; radiation therapy for cervical cancer and intra-abdominal malignancies; bowel perforation complications due to kidney transplant; chemicals are swallowed. Some other causes:
Gastrointestinal perforation can be caused by external catalysts; Ischemia to intestinal obstruction.

3. Treatment of gastrointestinal perforation

The main methods of treating gastrointestinal perforation are:
Surgery: To close the perforation and the goal is to cure the cause of the peritonitis; remove substances due to rupture of the gastrointestinal tract in the abdomen such as feces, bile, food... Medical treatment: If the hole is closed, the patient may not have to have surgery and only need medical treatment. Part of the bowel may have to be removed. Vinmec International General Hospital with a system of modern facilities, medical equipment and a team of experts and doctors with many years of experience in neurological examination and treatment, patients can completely rest in peace. examination and treatment center at the Hospital.

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