treatment

Last reviewed 01/2018

Any abscess should be drained.

Surgery, if necessary, is dictated by the underlying cause:

• diverticulitis - bluntly dissect the colon from the bladder, resect it, and perform a primary anastomosis. If resection is not possible, consider a Hartmann's procedure.

• carcinoma - treat with care to ensure that tumour cells do not spill into the pelvis. Remove a disk of bladder wall in continuity with the colon, close the bladder, and catheterise for 7-10 days.