Case series of acute abdomen with midgut malrotation presenting in adulthood

Abstract

Introduction: Intestinal malrotation (IM) is a congenital anomaly due to partial or complete failure of the 270° counter-clockwise rotation of the midgut around the superior mesenteric vessels in 5th to 12th week of fetal life. Midgut malrotation usually presents as an emergency in the 1st month of life or within infancy. Adult cases are rarely reported and usually present with chronic nonspecific symptoms. Here, we present a case series of acute abdomen with midgut malrotation presenting in adulthood that came to the Department of Surgical Gastroenterology of a tertiary hospital in Salem, Tamil Nadu. Case Summary: Four patients presented with acute abdominal complaints, diagnosed, and proceeded with emergency laparotomy. Three patients had abdominal abnormalities unrelated to coexisting IM, and the other one showed sequelae of IM with Ladd's band and obstruction. Except the first patient, all other patients improved well postoperatively and were discharged without complications. Conclusion: IM should be considered in differential diagnosis of acute abdomen and bowel obstruction in adults. IM may be encountered as an incidental imaging/laparotomy finding or be the cause of acute abdomen.