An Unusual Case of a Perforated Meckel’s Diverticulum

Background. Meckel’s diverticulum, the most common congenital anomaly of the gastrointestinal tract, typically presents in children with gastrointestinal bleeding. Case Presentation. An 11-year-old Caucasian male presented with a 6 week history of abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea. He was found...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Case reports in pediatrics 2023-04, Vol.2023, p.2289520-4
Main Authors: Mendoza Alvarez, Lybil, Rajderkar, Dhanashree, Beasley, Genie L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abdomen
Abscesses
Anemia
Antibiotics
Biopsy
Blood
Case Report
Case reports
Children & youth
Colonoscopy
Congenital diseases
Consent
Crohn's disease
Diarrhea
Feces
Fever
Histology
Inflammation
Inflammatory bowel disease
Iron
Laboratories
Medical imaging
Pain
Patients
Pediatrics
Small intestine
Surgery
Ulcers
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Summary:Background. Meckel’s diverticulum, the most common congenital anomaly of the gastrointestinal tract, typically presents in children with gastrointestinal bleeding. Case Presentation. An 11-year-old Caucasian male presented with a 6 week history of abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea. He was found to have iron deficiency anemia, markedly elevated serum and fecal inflammatory markers, and imaging showing a contained bowel perforation. He was evaluated for infectious etiologies and later underwent extensive testing for inflammatory bowel disease. Ultimately, he was found to have a Meckel’s diverticulum, which was successfully resected and led to resolution of his gastrointestinal complaints. Conclusions. This case report highlights one of the more rare presentations in children, which is intestinal perforation. Symptoms of a Meckel’s diverticulum can overlap with those of inflammatory bowel disease, as demonstrated by our patient. Clinicians should be familiar with criteria to establish diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease, and if diagnosis isn’t fully supported by testing, they should expand the differential and consider Meckel’s diverticulum.
ISSN:2090-6803
2090-6811
DOI:10.1155/2023/2289520