Health Encyclopedia

Meckel’s diverticulectomy

Definition

Meckel's diverticulectomy is surgery to remove an abnormal pouch (Meckel's diverticulum) in the wall of the small intestine.

Description

The procedure is done while you are under general anesthesia, which means you are asleep and feel no pain during the procedure. The surgeon makes a cut into right side of the lower abdomen and located the small intestine. The diverticulum is removed. Sometimes a small part of the intestine may need to be removed along with the diverticulum. In this case, the ends of each part of the intestine are sewn back together.

Indications

Inflammation or infection of Meckel's diverticulum (diverticulitis) can be mistaken for appendicitis. The most common symptom of Meckel's diverticulitis is painless bleeding from the rectum. The stools may contain fresh blood or may look black and tarry.

Risks

Risks for any anesthesia include the following:

Reactions to medications
Problems breathing

Risks for any surgery are include the following:

Bleeding
Infection

Expectations after surgery

The outcome of any surgery depends on many conditions. Your health care provider can give you a good idea of your likely outcome.

Convalescence

After surgery, the health care team will carefully monitor you and give you medicine to relieve any pain. You will receive fluids by IV until bowel sounds are heard, and then you can resume eating by mouth. A nasogastric tube may be placed through your nose into the stomach to empty the stomach. Antibiotics may be given to prevent or treat infection. Most patients leave the hospital within a week after surgery, if there are no complications.

Review Date:10/16/2006
Reviewed By:J.A. Lee, M.D., Assistant Professor of Surgery, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

ADAM Quality A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org). URAC's accreditation program is the first of its kind, requiring compliance with 53 standards of quality and accountability, verified by independent audit. A.D.A.M. is among the first to achieve this important distinction for online health information and services. Learn more about A.D.A.M.'s editorial process. A.D.A.M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics (www.hiethics.com) and subscribes to the principles of the Health on the Net Foundation (www.hon.ch).

The Agency for Health Care Administration (Agency) and this website do not claim the information on, or referred to by, this site is error free. This site may include links to websites of other government agencies or private groups. Our Agency and this website do not control such sites and are not responsible for their content. Reference to or links to any other group, product, service, or information does not mean our Agency or this website approves of that group, product, service, or information.

Additionally, while health information provided through this website may be a valuable resource for the public, it is not designed to offer medical advice. Talk with your doctor about medical care questions you may have.