Bowel injury as a complication of induced abortion: A case report and literature review

Intestinal perforation is a rare complication of induced abortion. It is mo st commonly seen in countries in which abortions are performed by people wi thout proper training and with improvised instruments. Bowel perforation oc curs when the posterior vaginal wall or uterus is violated, allowing the in strument to pierce underlying structures. The ileum and sigmoid colon are t he most commonly injured portions of bowel due to their anatomic location. A case is reported of a 17-year-old woman who sustained a perforation of he r anterior rectal wall from an abortion in Haiti. The literature on this ty pe of injury is reviewed as well as the surgical management of these injuri es.