Sigmoid Volvulus in an 11-Year-Old Girl

Abstract

Sigmoid volvulus occurred in an 11-year-old girl, an entity rarely reported in children. The volvulus was successfully reduced with a rectal tube after failure of reduction by barium enema. The ideal method of treatment is unknown because of the scarcity of reported cases. The basic underlying anatomical defect that predisposes to sigmoid volvulus is congenital: a long redundant sigmoid with a narrow base. The apparent rarity of sigmoid volvulus in infancy and childhood may be due to failure to diagnose an incomplete intestinal obstruction secondary to a partial sigmoid volvulus, which then undergoes spontaneous detorsion.