Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Question on intussusception for Dr Peter Dunn Radiologist at Exact Radiology

"If one suspects that a young child has intussusception, what is the best investigation for this?"  GP Qld


Always ultrasound scan.  Usually obvious when positive and "normal" means "excluded with about 95 percent confidence".  If present, we do an air reduction with a rectal catheter.  Much more effective than barium. Air reduction has a lower risk of perforation.

However , it should only be done in a hospital environment (preferably tertiary), where there is paediatric surgical support because this is potentially a high risk patient in any event. 


Dr Peter Dunn
Exact Radiology


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