[Complications of diverticular disease of the colon. Apropos of 247 cases].

In the last five years, 7 teams, members of a surgical club of lower Normandy, have performed 1,136 colon procedures, including 247 for severe diverticular disease. The patients were grouped in two categories according to the severity of the complications presented: 159 sub-acute complications including 137 acute cases of sigmoiditis (diverticulitis, peri-colic micro abscesses, pseudo-tumoral forms) and 22 fistulae, 88 severe acute complications including 60 generalized peritonites, 12 huge abscesses, 9 occlusions and 7 hemorrhages. The total post-operative mortality is 6 p. cent. It is quite different in the surgery of sub-acute complications (0.6%) and the surgery of acute severe complications (16%). The total morbidity reaches 14.8 p. cent. Complications are more frequent and more severe in acute forms (18.5%) than in subacute forms (10.5%). At long term, 10.8 p. cent of the patients operated upon, kept a permanent colostomy (25 p. cent in acute forms vs 2.3 p. cent in subacute forms). 89.2 p. cent have a normal digestive tract following treatment (97.7 p. cent in subacute forms and 53 p. cent in acute forms).