Volvulus of the sigmoid colon among Pathans.

Volvulus of the sigmoid colon is rare, and a surgeon is likely to see only a few cases during his lifetime. This paper reports its prevalence among the Pathans, and describes our experience with primary resection and anastomosis. Geographical Distribution.?In Great Britain sigmoid volvulus accounts for only 2.5% of cases of intestinal obstruc tion from all causes (Porritt, 1950) and in the U.S.A. between 1% (Hinton and Steiner, 1942) and 4% (Campbell and Smith, 1950). This is in sharp contrast with those countries where a high incidence of sigmoid volvulus has been reported?namely, Germany 31% (Braun and Wortmann, 1949), Russia 50% (Perlmann, 1949), Uganda approximately 20% (J. J. Shepherd, personal communication), and Brazil 25% (Oliveira et al., 1963). In Peshawar the figure is 30% ; of 127 cases of intestinal obstruction admitted during the three years 1962-4 sigmoid volvulus was responsible for 38. This is a high figure, and is comparable to the incidence in other areas where the condition is prevalent.