Laparoscopic repair of a colonic perforation sustained during colonoscopy

A patient who sustained a colonic perforation during therapeutic colonoscopy was treated successfully by laparoscopic repair. Laparoscopy was performed 5 h after polypectomy. Fecal matter was not identified in the peritoneal cavity. Local peritonitis was mild. The laceration was oversewn with five sutures using the extracorporeal endoscopic knot technique. The appendix epiploica was then anchored over the lesion. The postoperative recovery was rapid and uneventful. Laparoscopic surgery may become a useful tool for the safe, effective, and minimally invasive management of iatrogenic colonic perforation.