A novel silk suture-assisted laparoscopic technique for the repair of a gastrocolic fistula in a pediatric patient

Percutaneous placement of gastrostomy was first described in 1980. Since then it has become widely used in pediatric surgery throughout the world. Inherent in the technique is the possibility of inadvertent damage to adjacent anatomical structures, most commonly the transverse colon. Management previously had involved laparotomy and correction of the gastrocolic fistula. Here we describe a novel laparoscopic approach to the repair of a gastrocolic fistula following percutaneous gastrostomy, avoiding the morbidity of laparotomy in an immunocompromised patient with a rotund abdomen secondary to steroid usage.