Colon injury and gastrocolocutaneous fistula complication of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy

Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) insertion is an effective endoscopic procedure for enteral feeding in patients with difficulty swallowing. Many postprocedural complications have been reported after the PEG procedure. The displacement of the transverse colon over the anterior gastric wall can predispose the patient to colonic injury and fistulae during PEG placement. Gastrocolonic fistulas represent a serious but rare complication post PEG placement. We report a 90 year old man with a background of multiple comorbidities and high preoperative risk who developed a gastrocolocutaneous fistula post PEG placement due to a colonic injury. He was successfully treated with nonoperative management.