[Cytomegalovirus infection-related spontaneous intestinal perforation and aorto-enteric fistula after abdominal aortic aneurysmal repair].

Gastrointestinal complications (GI) after thoracoabdominal aortic repair can be classified as biliary disease, heptic dysfunction, pancreatitis, GI bleeding, peptic ulcer disease, bowel ischemia, paralytic ileus, and aortoenteric fistula. Theses complications are associated with high post operative morbidity and mortality. Most of the aortoenteric fistulae after thoracoabdominal aortic surgery are found at the duodenum, near the surgical site. These rare complications are caused by an indirect communication with abdominal aorta that originated from an aneursymal formation ruptured into the duodenum. Such aorto-duodenal fistula formation is considered as a result of inflammatory change from secondary infection near the surgical instruments. Herein, we report two cases of massive upper GI bleeding from aorto-duodenal fistulae and spontaneous lower GI perforation related to cytomegalovirus infection after abdominal aortic aneurysmal repair operations.

Severe recurrent cytomegalovirus disease revealed by a colocutaneous fistula in a kidney transplant recipient.

Intestinal disorders are classical complications of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in kidney transplant recipients (Helderman JH, Goral S. Gastrointestinal complications of transplant immunosuppression. J Am Soc Nephrol 2002: 13: 277-287). Severe ulcerative colitis that is sometimes lethal has been reported (Foucar E, Mukai K, Foucar K, Sutherland DE, Van Buren CT. Colon ulceration in lethal cytomegalovirus infection. Am J Clin Pathol 1981: 76: 788-801 and Frankel AH, Barker F, Williams G, Benjamin IS, Lechler R, Rees AJ. Neutropenic enterocolitis in a renal transplant patient. Transplantation 1991: 52: 913-914). The immunosuppressive drugs currently used, and notably mycophenolate mofetil (Cellcept), cause significant changes in the incidence, duration, and viral load of CMV infections with severe atypical forms of CMV disease (De Maar EF, Verschuuren EA, Homan vd Heide JJ, et al. Effects of changing immunosuppressive regimen on the incidence, duration and viral load of cytomegalovirus infection in renal transplantation: a single center report. Transpl Infect Dis 2002: 4: 17-24 and Perez Valentin MA, Cofan F, Sole M, et al. Atypical cytomegalovirus in renal transplantation: a new form of presentation. Nefrologia 2002: 22: 381-385). This report describes a patient who suffered from several episodes of colitis due to an unusual and late-appearing CMV infection.