Sometimes it is safe to discharge a patient with diverticulitis diagnosed in the Emergency Department home. Sirany et al identified reasons why a patient may need to be admitted. The authors are from the University of Minnesota.
Patient selection: diverticulitis diagnosed in the Emergency Department
Criteria for discharging the patient on oral antibiotics:
(1) uncomplicated diverticulitis
(2) no reasons to admit
CT scanning is important for recognizing complicated diverticulitis.
Risk factors for being admitted (Table 1):
(1) age > 65 years of age
(2) Charlson comorbidity index >= 2 or significant comorbid condition
(3) therapy with corticosteroids or immunosuppressive drugs
(4) extraluminal air or pneumoperitoneum (indicative of perforation)
(5) diverticular abscess
(6) WBC count > 15,000 per µL on presentation
Reasons to admit not associated with significant diverticulitis (Table 2):
(1) pain control
(2) social problem
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