Pylephlebitis, a rare complication of acute appendicitis: a case report

Authors

  • Carlos Henrique Carvalho Milhomem Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.69849/c2bnqv81

Keywords:

pylephlebitis, acute appendicitis, appendectomy

Abstract

This is a case report on pylephlebitis, a rare complication associated with cases of inflammatory acute abdomen. In this report, the complication occurred following an episode of uncomplicated acute appendicitis treated at the General Surgery Unit of Hospital Regional da Asa Norte, Brasília, DF, Brazil. The patient underwent an appendectomy via laparotomy. On the fifth postoperative day, the patient developed an infected thrombus in the portal vein, confirmed by abdominal computed tomography angiography and bacterial growth in blood cultures.
The information for this study was obtained through the analysis of medical records, operative reports, and outpatient follow-up records, as well as through a literature review on the topic. This represents a rare case with challenging management. The case highlights severe complications that may arise after a seemingly routine episode of inflammatory acute abdomen, which may lead to sepsis and hepatic dysfunction, in addition to serving as a basis for investigating underlying hematological disorders in the patient.
Both surgical and conservative management strategies applied throughout the patient’s treatment were decisive for recovery, despite a prolonged and complex postoperative course.

References

Choudhry A.J., Baghdadi Y.M.K., Amr M.A., Alzghari M.J., Jenkins D., Zielinski M.D. Pylephlebitis: A Review of 95 Cases. J. Gastrointest. Surg. 2016;20:656–661. doi: 10.1007/s11605-015-2875-3.

Belhassen-García M., Gomez-Munuera M., Pardo-Lledias J., Velasco-Tirado V., Perez-Persona E., Galindo-Perez I., Alvela-Suárez L., Romero-Alegría Á., Muñoz-Bellvis L., Cordero-Sánchez M. Pylephlebitis: Incidence and prognosis in a tertiary hospital. Enferm. Infecc Microbiol. Clin. 2014;32:350–354. doi: 10.1016/j.eimc.2013.09.002.

Hartpence J, Woolf A. Pylephlebitis. 2021 Jul 6. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021 Jan–. PMID: 33085393.

Osler W. Case of Obliteration of the Portal Vein (Pylephlebitis Adhesiva). J Anat Physiol. 1882 Jan;16(Pt 2):208-16. PMID: 17231426; PMCID: PMC1310058.

Kanellopoulou T., Alexopoulou A., Theodossiades G., Koskinas J., Archimandritis A.J. Pylephlebitis: An overview of non-cirrhotic cases and factors related to outcome. Scand. J. Infect. Dis. 2010;42:804–811. doi: 10.3109/00365548.2010.508464 .

Baril N., Wren S., Radin R., Ralls P., Stain S. The role of anticoagulation in pylephlebitis. Am. J. Surg. 1996;172:449–453. doi: 10.1016/S0002-9610(96)00220-6.

Jevtic D., Gavrancic T., Pantic I., Nordin T., Nordstrom C.W., Antic M., Pantic N., Kaljevic M., Joksimovic B., Jovanovic M., et al. Suppurative Thrombosis of the Portal Vein (Pylephlebits): A Systematic Review of Literature. J. Clin. Med. 2022;11:4992. doi: 10.3390/jcm11174992.

Ufuk F, Herek D, Karabulut N. Pylephlebitis complicating acute appendicitis: prompt diagnosis with contrast- enhanced computed tomography. The Journal of Emergency Medicine, 2016. PMID: 26810023

Londoño E, Hernandez DJ, Rey M, Cabrera FL, Medellín A, Lopez P, Quintero L, Vinck E, Pedraza M, Sánchez S. Pylephlebitis both a surgical and non-surgical pathology: A 2-case report and literature review. Journal of Liver Research, Disorders e Therapy, 2018. DOI: 10.15406/jlrdt. 2018.04.00104 .

Pinto S, Lerner T, Lingamaneni G, Richards K. Superior mesenteric vein thrombosis as a complication of cecal diverticulitis: A case report. Int J Surg Case Rep. 2016; 25: 71-4. doi: 10.1016/ j.ijscr.2016.06.002. Epub 2016 Jun 15. PMID: 27332698; PMCID: PMC4917498.

. Pérez-Bru S, Nofuentes-Riera C, García-Marín A, Luri-Prieto P, Morales-Calderón M, García-García S. Pileflebitis: una extraña pero posible complicación de las infecciones intraabdominales [Pylephlebitis: a rare but possible complication of intra-abdominal infections]. Cir Cir. 2015 Nov-Dec; 83(6): 501-5. Spanish. doi: 10.1016/j.circir.2015.05.029. Epub 2015 Jun 30. PMID: 26141109.

Hamera L, Abraham S, Jordan J. Pylephlebitis as a Rare Complication of Ulcerative Colitis: A Case Report. Cureus. 2019 May 31; 11(5): e4792. doi: 10.7759/cureus.4792. PMID: 31384516; PMCID: PMC6679714.)

Cho JW, Choi JJ, Um E, Jung SM, Shin YC, Jung SW, Kim JI, Choi PW, Heo TG, Lee MS, Jun H. Clinical Manifestations of Superior Mesenteric Venous Thrombosis in the Era of Computed Tomography. Vasc Specialist Int. 2018 Dec 34(4): 83-87. PMCID: PMC6340699.

Hartpence J, Woolf A. Pylephlebitis. [Updated 2023 Aug 13]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK563246/

Wong K, Weisman DS, Patrice KA. Pylephlebitis: a rare complication of an intra-abdominal infection. Journal of Community Hospital Internal Medicine Perspectives, 2013. PMID: 23882407

Fusaro L, Di Bella S, Martingano P, Crocè LS, Giuffrè M. Pylephlebitis: A Systematic Review on Etiology, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Infective Portal Vein Thrombosis. Diagnostics (Basel). 2023 Jan 25;13(3):429. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics13030429

Queiroz RM, Sampaio FDC, Marques PE, Ferez MA, Febronio EM. Pylephlebitis and septic thrombosis of the inferior mesenteric vein secondary yo diverticulitis. Radiol Bras, 2018. DOI: 10.1590/0100- 3984.2017.0046

Nasir SA, Chambers E, Wojkiewicz S. Pylephlebitis With Splenic and Mesenteric Vein Thrombosis in a Patient With Diverticulitis. Cureus. 2022 Aug 29;14(8). doi: 10.7759/cureus.28524. PMID: 36185925; PMCID: PMC9516873 .

Lim HE, Cheong HJ, Woo HJ, Kim WJ, Kim MJ, Lee CH, et al. Pylephlebitis associated with appendicitis. Korean J Intern Med. 1999 Jan;14(1):73-6. doi: 10.3904/kjim.1999.14.1.73. PMID: 10063317; PMCID: PMC4531908

Tang R, Tian X, Xie X, Yang Y. Intestinal Infarction Caused by Thrombophlebitis of the Portomesenteric Veins as a Complication of Acute Gangrenous Appendicitis After Appendectomy: A Case Report. Medicine (Baltimore). 2015 Jun;94(24). doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000001033. PMID: 26091450; PMCID: PMC4616561. .

Murray J.L., Connell J.L., Stacy A., Turner K.H., Whiteley M. Mechanisms of synergy in polymicrobial infections. J. Microbiol. 2014;52:188. doi: 10.1007/s12275-014-4067-3.

Shah P.M., Edwards B.L., Dietch Z.C., Guidry C.A., Davies S.W., Hennessy S.A., Duane T.M., O’Neill P.J., Coimbra R., Cook C.H., et al. Do Polymicrobial Intra-Abdominal Infections Have Worse Outcomes than Monomicrobial Intra-Abdominal Infections? Surg. Infect. 2016;17:27. doi: 10.1089/sur.2015.127. .

Plemmons RM, Doley DP, Longfield RN. Septic Thrombophlebitis of the Portal Vein (Pylephlebitis): Diagnosis and Management in the Modern Era. Clin Infect Dis. 1995 Nov;21(5):1114-20. doi: 10.1093/clinids/21.5.1114.

Naymagon L, Tremblay D, Schiano T, Mascarenhas J. The role of anticoagulation in pylephlebitis: a retrospective examination of characteristics and outcomes. J Thromb Thrombolysis. 2020 Feb;49(2):325-31. doi: 10.1007/s11239-019-01949-z. PMID: 31493290.

Baril N, Wren S, Radin R, Ralls P, Stain S. The role of anticoagulation in pylephlebitis. Am J Surg. 1996 Nov;172(5):449-52; discussion 452-3. doi: 10.1016/S0002-9610(96)00220-6. PMID: 8942542.

Dean J.W., Trerotola S.O., Harris V.J., Snidow J.J., Hawes D. Percutaneous management of suppurative pylephlebitis. J. Vasc. Interv. Radiol. 1995;6:585–588. doi: 10.1016/S1051-0443(95)71141-1.

Huurman V.A., Visser L.G., Steens S.C., Terpstra O.T., Schaapherder A.F. Persistent portal venous gas. J. Gastrointest. Surg. 2006;10:783–785. doi: 10.1016/j.gassur.2005.04.016

Farin P., Paajanen H., Miettinen P. Intraoperative US diagnosis of pylephlebitis (portal vein thrombosis) as a complication of appendicitis: A case report. Abdom. Imaging. 1997;22:401–403. doi: 10.1007/s002619900220.

Duffy F.J., Millan M.T., Schoetz D.J., Larsen C.R. Suppurative pylephlebitis and pylethrombosis: The role of anticoagulation. Am. Surg. 1995;61:1041–1044.

Joly V., Belmatoug N., Sibert A., Carbon C., Yeni P. Septic thrombophlebitis of the portal vein. Clin. Infect. Dis. 1996;23:417–418. doi: 10.1093/clinids/23.2.417-a. .

Tung J.Y., Johnson J.L., Liacouras C.A. Portal-mesenteric pylephlebitis with hepatic abscesses in a patient with Crohn’s disease treated successfully with anticoagulation and antibiotics. J. Pediatr. Gastroenterol. Nutr. 1996;23:474–478. doi: 10.1097/00005176-199611000-00022. .

Saxena R., Adolph M., Ziegler J.R., Murphy W., Rutecki G.W. Pylephlebitis: A case report and review of outcome in the antibiotic era. Am. J. Gastroenterol. 1996;91:1251–1253.

Balthazar E.J., Gollapudi P. Septic thrombophlebitis of the mesenteric and portal veins: CT imaging. J. Comput. Assist. Tomogr. 2000;24:755–760. doi: 10.1097/00004728-200009000-00017.

Zardi E.M., Giorgi C., Zardi D.M. Pylephlebitis as a Complication of Cholangitis and Sepsis in an HIV-Positive Patient. Dig. Dis. Sci. 2019;64:1719–1721. doi: 10.1007/s10620-018-5391-y.

Published

2026-03-15

How to Cite

Milhomem, C. H. C. (2026). Pylephlebitis, a rare complication of acute appendicitis: a case report. Revista Ft, 30(156), 01-16. https://doi.org/10.69849/c2bnqv81