CASE REPORT: INTESTINAL PERFORATION IN BOWEL OBSTRUCTION DUE TO ASCARIS LUMBRICOIDES

Abstract

Introduction: Ascaris lumbricoides is a nematode parasite that can infect humans, being the main cause of soil-transmitted helminth infections, which can have varied outcomes, from the gastrointestinal or respiratory disorders, to surgical emergencies. Its incidence occurs mainly in tropical and temperate zones, with a greater number of cases reported in the pediatric population.

Materials and methods: This is a clinical case report accompanied by a brief review of the literature on a 17-year-old male patient, of the indigenous race, with intestinal obstruction, who was taken to exploratory laparotomy with a finding of intestinal perforation caused by a lumbricoid Ascaris at the level of the distal ileum at 30 cm from the ileocecal valve. Damage control surgery and subsequent intestinal resection, primary anastomosis and closure of the abdominal cavity were performed.

Conclusión : en áreas endémicas, la infección por Ascaris lumbricoides es una causa común de emergencias quirúrgicas, representando el 10% del total. La población en mayor riesgo son los niños en edad escolar de regiones subtropicales como Brasil, México, Colombia, entre otros. La obstrucción intestinal es la causa más común de urgencia quirúrgica, sin embargo, la perforación intestinal rara vez se asocia a ella, de ahí la importancia de conocer el espectro clínico de esta entidad.