Management of Intussusception in the Era of Ultrasound-Guided Hydrostatic Reduction: A 3-Year Experience from a Tertiary Care Center

INTRODUCTION: Ultrasound-guided hydrostatic reduction (HSR) is currently the initial management tool in the treatment of intussusception. HSR is, however, confronted with failures besides there are still a number of patients who primarily undergo surgical intervention for the management of intussusception. We undertook this study to assess the efficacy of HSR and also to look for factors demanding the surgical exploration in patients with intussusception. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 215 patients with intussusception from June 2014 to June 2017 were prospectively studied. HSR was carried out in 203 patients, which was successful in 187 and unsuccessful in 16. These two groups were compared using the Student's t-test. Significance was set at P < 0.05. Twelve patients undergoing surgery primarily were also assessed for the factors affecting the decision-making. RESULTS: HSR was successful in 187 and unsuccessful in 16. The failed group was more likely to have symptoms over 24 h, appearance of crescent, and ≥10-cm length on ultrasonography (USG). Two of these patients had ischemic bowel, two had ileoileal intussusception, and eight had pathological lead points, whereas no obvious cause could be identified in the rest of the four patients. Among the 12 patients who were primarily operated, four patients had peritonitis and other four patients were neonates. Laparoscopic reduction was done in four patients. CONCLUSION: HSR is a safe and effective treatment modality for intussusception. However, it is met with higher failure rates in patients with risk factors such as delayed presentation, appearance of crescent on USG, and length >10 cm. The role of HSR is also dubious in situations such as neonatal intussusception, small-bowel intussusception, and multiple intussusceptions and also in preventing the future recurrence. Such patients ought to be managed by laparotomy or where feasible by laparoscopy. Furthermore, before embarking on HSR, peritonitis and bowel ischemia should be ruled out clinically and radiologically. In the suspicious cases of bowel ischemia, USG Doppler may be helpful.