Perforated tubular duodenal duplication in a 79 year old woman: Case report and review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION: Enteric duplications are rare congenital anomalies of the digestive tract that can occur anywhere along its length, with the majority being found in the small intestine. The duodenum is the least common site. Almost all symptomatic duodenal duplications present early in life with abdominal pain and pancreatitis. To the best of our knowledge this is the first described case of a perforated tubular duodenal duplication in an elderly adult. PRESENTATION OF CASE: We present a case of a perforated tubular duodenal duplication in an elderly woman. She presented with diffuse abdominal pain, fever, and tachycardia. Emergent exploratory laparotomy revealed a perforated duodenal duplication. Excision of the duodenal duplication and primary closure of the defect was performed successfully. The patient recovered well. DISCUSSION: Enteric duplications are poorly understood anomalies of embryonic development. They can be cystic or tubular dorsal enteric remnants lying in communication with the alimentary tract that are distinct from diverticula. A tubular duodenal duplication is exceedingly rare, and this case is made even more notable in that such an anomaly presented with sepsis and occurred in a 79 year old woman. We are unsure why the duplication ruptured. To the best of our knowledge this case represents the first report of a ruptured tubular duodenal duplication in an elderly adult.
CONCLUSION: This is a very rare occurrence and has never been described in an elderly patient before. Excision and primary closure led to a good outcome.