Causes of Peritonitis
List of causes of Peritonitis
Following is a list of causes or underlying conditions
(see also Misdiagnosis of underlying causes of Peritonitis)
that could possibly cause Peritonitis includes:
Causes of Peritonitis (Diseases Database):
The follow list shows some of the possible medical causes of Peritonitis
that are listed by the Diseases Database:
Source: Diseases Database
Peritonitis Causes: Risk Factors
The following conditions have been cited in various
sources as potentially causal risk factors
related to Peritonitis:
Peritonitis Causes: Book Excerpts
Peritonitis: Related Medical Conditions
To research the causes of Peritonitis, consider researching the causes of these
these diseases that may be similar, or associated with Peritonitis:
Peritonitis: Causes and Types
Causes of Types of Peritonitis: Review the cause informationfor the various types of Peritonitis:
Causes of Broader Categories of Peritonitis: Review the causal information about the various more general categories of medical conditions:
Peritonitis as a complication of other conditions:
Other conditions that might have
Peritonitis as a complication may,
potentially, be an underlying cause of Peritonitis.
Our database lists the following as having
Peritonitis as a complication of that condition:
Peritonitis as a symptom:
Conditions listing Peritonitis
as a symptom may also be potential underlying causes of Peritonitis.
Our database lists the following as having
Peritonitis as a symptom of that condition:
Related information on causes of Peritonitis:
As with all medical conditions,
there may be many causal factors.
Further relevant information on causes of Peritonitis may be found in:
Causes of Peritonitis: Online Medical Books
16 MEDICAL BOOKS ONLINE!
Review excerpts from medical books online, free, without registration,
for more information about the causes of Peritonitis.
Peritonitis:
Causes
(Handbook of Diseases)
Although the GI tract normally contains bacteria, the peritoneum is sterile. In peritonitis, however, bacteria invade the peritoneum. Generally, such infection results from inflammation and perforation of the GI tract, allowing bacterial invasion. Usually, this is a result of appendicitis, diverticulitis, peptic ulcer, ulcerative colitis, volvulus, strangulated obstruction, perforated or ruptured gallbladder, gangrenous gallbladder, abdominal neoplasm, or a penetrating wound.
Peritonitis may also result from chemical inflammation, as in the rupture of a fallopian tube or the bladder, perforation of a gastric ulcer, or release of pancreatic enzymes.
With chemical and bacterial inflammation, accumulated fluids containing protein and electrolytes make the transparent peritoneum opaque, red, inflamed, and edematous. Because the peritoneal cavity is so resistant to contamination, such infection is often localized as an abscess instead of disseminated as a generalized infection.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003
Peritonitis:
Peritonitis - risk factors
(The 5-Minute Pediatric Consult)
- Liver cirrhosis (10–30% of adults hospitalized with cirrhosis have SBP), nephrotic syndrome (staphylococcal species, streptococci, enteric organisms, and fungi)
- Splenectomy (encapsulated organisms: Group A streptococci, E. coli, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Bacteroides sp.)
- Decreased serum complement levels
- Decreased ascitic protein and complement levels
- Presence of gastrointestinal hemorrhage
Peritonitis - pathophysiology
- When bacteria or chemicals reach the peritoneal cavity, a local peritoneal and systemic response is initiated.
- Hyperemia and exudation of fibrinogen, albumin, opsonins, and complement
- Mesothelial cells secrete cytokines (interleukin [IL]-6, IL-8, tumor necrosis factor-α [TNF-α]). IL-6 stimulates T- and B-cell differentiation, and IL-8 is a selective chemoattractant for polymorphonuclear (PMN) leucocytes.
- In SBP, pathogenic bacteria are cultured from peritoneal fluid without any apparent intra-abdominal surgical treatable source of infection. Recognized as a complication in patients with ascites as a result of cirrhosis of any etiology:
- Generalized bacteremia and translocation of organisms from the gut (E. coli, Klebsiella sp.) into the portal veins or lymphatics or, less likely, directly into the ascitic fluid may account for the source of the infection.
- Clearance of bacteria from the bloodstream may be impaired in patients with cirrhosis and ascites because of diminished phagocytic activity of the hepatic reticulo-endothelial system secondary to cellular functional defects or shunting of blood away from the liver.
- Complement, necessary for the opsonization of bacteria and ultimately clearance by phagocytes, is decreased in the ascitic fluid of patients with ascites.
- In secondary bacterial peritonitis, the underlying bacterial infection tends to be a complex polymicrobial infection with an average of 3 or 4 different isolates; the most common isolates are combinations of E. coli and Bacteroides fragilis, and the most common Gram-positive organisms are nonenterococcal streptococci and enterococci.
Peritonitis - etiology
- Primary peritonitis: Liver cirrhosis or other conditions associated with ascites, such as:
- Budd-Chiari syndrome
- CHF
- Nephrotic syndrome
- Systemic lupus erythematosus
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- The etiology of secondary peritonitis varies with age.
- Neonate:
- Necrotizing enterocolitis
- Idiopathic gastrointestinal perforation
- Perforation due to Hirschsprung disease
- Spontaneous biliary perforation
- Omphalitis
- Perforation of an urachal cyst
- Children and adolescents:
- Secondary to appendicitis
- Perforation of Meckel diverticulum
- Gastric ulcer perforation
- Pancreatitis
- Traumatic perforation of the intestine
- Intussusception
- Neutropenic colitis (typhlitis)
- Crohn disease with fistula and abscess formation
- Toxic megacolon
- Tuberculosis
- Salpingitis
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: The 5-Minute Pediatric Consult, 2008
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Risk Factors for Peritonitis
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