Postoperative Bowel Obstruction as a Rare Complication of an Abdominal Drain

Abstract

Although routine intra-abdominal drain insertion following surgery represents a  common practice worldwide, its utility has been questioned during the last  decades. Several comparative studies have failed to document significant benefits  from routine draining, and drain insertion has been correlated with various complications as well. Drain-related complications include, but are not limited,  to infection, bleeding, and tissue erosion. Herein, we present the case of a 32-year-old patient with perforated peptic ulcer and purulent peritonitis, whose postoperative course was complicated by early mechanical bowel obstruction due to an abdominal drain. A high level of clinical suspicion, along with accurate imaging diagnosis, dictated prompt removal of the drain, which resulted in immediate resolution of the patient's symptoms. We aim to increase the clinical awareness of this rare complication related to intra-abdominal drain utilization  with this report.