ABSTRACT
A mechanical ileus was considered in the differential diagnosis of a 28-year-old man who presented to the Emergency Clinic with acute, severe, painful cramps in the lower abdomen of 2 hours' duration, without radiation and with an urge to move constantly. An emergency laparotomy was then performed, revealing non-rotation of the intestine; the last segment ofthe small intestine was pinched off by a strangulation. Several strangulations were cleaved, after which the symptoms disappeared. Non-rotation, a form of malrotation, is a congenital anomaly of intestinal rotation. In adults, non-rotation is a rare diagnosis with a variable presentation. Surgical intervention is necessary in both the acute and the more chronic presentation. The chronic presentation is usually discovered by chance in patients who have had aspecific recurrent abdominal complaints for a long time; if malrotation is suspected, additional investigation, for example by means of a gastrointestinal contrast study, is necessary before resorting to surgery. In the acute situation, immediate surgery is the only proper decision. Surgical intervention comprises reduction of the volvulus, inspection of the mesenteric bands (Ladd's bands) that run from the coecum to the lateral peritoneum and compress the duodenum, and an appendectomy: the Ladd procedure.
