Volume 72 Number 6 November 2005	back to contents

Department of General Surgery, Cerrahpasa Medical Facility, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey.

Address all correspondence to Ilhan Karabiçak, M.D., 523 West 160th Street #3D, New York, NY 10032; ikarabicak@yahoo.com

Accepted for publication April 2005.

ABSTRACT

We report a case of a premenopausal woman with severe constipation causing intermittent obstruction. Colonoscopy revealed a tight rectal stricture; however, mucosal biopsies were normal. Exploratory surgery revealed an intense fibrotic reaction involving the rectum and uterus, necessitating a simultaneous low anterior resection and hysterectomy. Pathology established a diagnosis of endometriosis.

Preoperative diagnosis of rectal endometriosis can be difficult to establish. Endometrial deposits do not invade the mucosa; therefore, colonoscopy with biopsies are frequently non-diagnostic.

Surgery may be the only definitive way to obtain a certain diagnosis. In cases involving rectal strictures of unknown etiology in premenopausal women, rectal endometriosis must be included in the differential diagnosis.

KEY WORDS

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