Catastrophic Gastrointestinal Bleeding: Always Consider Meckel’s Diverticulum

Authors

• Filipa Pedro Unidade de Cuidados Intensivos do Hospital Egas Moniz, Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Ocidental, Portugal 0000-0003-0158-4602
• Joana Romano Serviço de Cirurgia do Hospital Egas Moniz, Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Ocidental, Portugal
• Marta Rebelo Unidade de Cuidados Intensivos do Hospital Egas Moniz, Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Ocidental, Portugal 0000-0003-0920-1397
• Rogério Matias Serviço de Cirurgia do Hospital Egas Moniz, Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Ocidental, Portugal
• Eduarda Carmo Unidade de Cuidados Intensivos do Hospital Egas Moniz, Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Ocidental, Portugal

filipa_sofia25@hotmail.com

Keywords

Abstract

Meckel’s diverticulum, a congenital malformation of the gastrointestinal tract, is asymptomatic in the majority of patients but can be associated with some complications. Gastrointestinal bleeding is one such complication and is more common in children than in adults. Despite the variety of examinations available, diagnosis can be difficult, especially in older patients, because the sensitivity of examinations decreases with patient age. Here we present the case of a young man with gastrointestinal bleeding in whom a diagnosis of Meckel’s diverticulum was made intra-operatively.