Small Bowel Obstruction: Clinical Presentation and Surgical Outcomes at Jimma University Medical Centre in Southwest Ethiopia

Abstract

Background The mortality from small bowel obstruction (SBO) range between 2% and 8% globally, and the proper management of it is a clinical challenge for surgeons. In Africa, intestinal obstruction accounts for a great proportion of morbidity, and in Ethiopia it ranges from 20–56%. Aims The aim of this study was to assess the pattern of disease and management outcomes among patient admitted to the surgical ward at Jimma Medical Center in Jimma, Ethiopia. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted over 5–25 November 2019. Data were entered in Epi-data 3.1 and exported to SPSS v23 for analysis. Logistic regression was undertaken to analyse the association between dependent and independent variables, and P-values below 0.05 at 95% CI were considered indicative of a statistically significant association. Results The study revealed that patient outcomes in SBO were significantly associated with people aged over 60 years, a prolonged hospital stay of more than 14 days, septic shock complications and previous history of congestive heart failure. Conclusions SBO was shown to be an issue of major concern, with major aetiologies related to volvulus, adhesions, intussusception and hernia.