Meckel's diverticulitis. Report of 10 cases

Background: Meckel's diverticulitis is an infrequent disease that must be considered in the differential diagnosis of acute abdominal pain. Clinical cases: We present 10 cases of Meckel's diverticulitis diagnosed at Hospital Ramon y Cajal ( Madrid) between 1985 and 2007. Results: There were eight males and two females with a mean age of 27.5 years. Nine cases presented as a pain in the right lower quadrant suspicious of acute appendicitis, and one case presented as bowel obstruction. Appendectomy + diverticulectomy were performed in those cases with preoperative diagnosis of appendicitis, and diverticulectomy and adhesion release in the patient diagnosed with bowel obstruction. Conclusions: Meckel's diverticulitis is a rare pathology. Intraoperatively, when the appendix is macroscopically normal, the abdominal compartment must be explored in order to exclude other inflammatory processes such as Meckel's diverticulitis.