Case Report
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World J Gastroenterol. Nov 14, 2012; 18(42): 6160-6163
Published online Nov 14, 2012. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v18.i42.6160
Enterolithiasis-associated ileus in Crohn's disease
Alexander Perathoner, Pamela Kogler, Christian Denecke, Johann Pratschke, Reinhold Kafka-Ritsch, Matthias Zitt
Alexander Perathoner, Pamela Kogler, Christian Denecke, Johann Pratschke, Reinhold Kafka-Ritsch, Matthias Zitt, Department of Visceral, Transplant and Thoracic Surgery, Center of Operative Medicine, Medical University of Innsbruck, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria
Author contributions: Perathoner A and Kogler P designed the case report and acquired data; Perathoner A, Denecke C and Zitt M wrote the paper; Pratschke J and Kafka-Ritsch R revised the paper.
Correspondence to: Alexander Perathoner, MD, Department of Visceral, Transplant and Thoracic Surgery, Center of Operative Medicine, Medical University of Innsbruck, Anichstr 35, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria. alexander.perathoner@uki.at
Telephone: +43-512-50422601 Fax: +43-512-50422602
Received: March 2, 2012
Revised: May 30, 2012
Accepted: June 8, 2012
Published online: November 14, 2012
Abstract

Stasis of the flow of the intestinal contents, ingested material and unfavorable composition of the chylus can lead to the formation of enteroliths inside the bowel. Enterolithiasis represents a rare disorder of the gastrointestinal tract that can be associated with intermittent abdominal pain or more serious complications such as bleeding or obstruction. Enterolithiasis in Crohn’s disease represents an extremely rare condition and usually occurs only in patients with a long symptomatic history of Crohn’s disease. We report an unusual case of enterolithiasis-related intestinal obstruction in a young male patient with Crohn’s disease (A2L3B1 Montreal Classification for Crohn’s disease 2005) undergoing emergency laparotomy and ileocoecal resection. In addition, we present an overview of the relevant characteristics of enterolithiasis on the basis of the corresponding literature.

Keywords: Crohn’s disease; Enterolithiasis; Ileus; Inflammatory bowel disease; Obstruction