Spontaneous rupture of the urinary bladder: a late complication of radiotherapy--case report and review of the literature.

The spontaneous intraperitoneal rupture of the urinary bladder is an extremely rare life-threatening event. There are often difficulties in establishing the diagnosis. A patient with spontaneous perforation of the urinary bladder, 15 years after pelvic radiotherapy for carcinoma of the cervix is reported. Aspects of etiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management are described. Special emphasis is placed on surgical management as it relates to long-term outcome.