Surgical aspects of the treatment of a patient with actinomycosis of the colon complicated by the formation of a colovesical fistula

Abstract

Actinomycosis is a chronic bacterial infection caused by bacteria from the Actinomycetaceae family. The causes of abdominal actinomycosis are usually destructive appendicitis, prolonged presence of an intrauterine contraceptive or perforation of the colon. Of the internal organs, the left colon and sigmoid colon are most often affected, which often leads to surgical complications. At the same time, diagnosis is significantly difficult due to the nonspecific nature of the clinical presentation, which is similar to that of oncological diseases, and verification of the process is possible only with microscopic examination in a specialized institution. A clinical case demonstrating the difficulties of diagnosis and treatment of widespread abdominal actinomycosis complicated by the development of a colovesical fistula is presented.