Colonic mucosal pseudolipomatosis: disinfectant colitis?

Colonic pseudolipomatosis is rare and its pathogenesis is still unclear. A number of mechanisms, including mechanical injury during an endoscopic procedure or chemical injury by disinfectant, seem to contribute to its pathogenesis. In our endoscopy unit, pseudolipomatosis occurred in an epidemic pattern after changing the endoscopic disinfectant from 2% glutaraldehyde to peracetic acid compound to decrease the length of endoscope reprocessing time. We assumed that pseudolipomatosis could be a type of chemical colitis produced by the residual disinfectant solution that remained on the surface or in a channel of the endoscope after reprocessing. The aim of this report was to highlight a series of 12 cases of colonic pseudolipomatosis in order to describe the endoscopic and pathological features and discuss the harmful effect of disinfectants as a possible cause of pseudolipomatosis. To identify the cause of the lesions, we systematically reviewed each patient history and the endoscopic and histological features. From March 2004 to February 2005, 1276 colonoscopies were performed and 12 cases (0.94%) of colonic pseudolipomatosis were diagnosed at the Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital of Hallym University. The pathogenesis of colonic pseudolipomatosis is not well-known, but our experience indicates the endoscopic disinfectant as the probable cause of pseudolipomatosis rather than either mechanical traumatic injury or intraluminal air pressure-related injury.