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Arch Surg. 2006;141:944.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Answer: Abdominal Cocoon

Abdominal cocoon is an unusual peritoneal condition where the small intestine is covered with a dense fibrotic membrane completely or partially. It is also called idiopathic, sclerosing, or encapsulated peritonitis.

Patients are generally adolescent girls from a tropical or subtropical region. The typical age range is between 12 and 18 years; however, patient ages range from 6 to 65 years in the literature.¹ Although some authors have found abdominal cocoon in patients using -blockers or patients with sarcoidosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and hepatic cirrhosis with or without shunt procedure and peritoneal dialysis, its etiology is still largely unknown. The most frequent symptom is subacute mechanical intestinal obstruction. However, our patient was a 57-year-old man with no known etiologic factor.

Patients with abdominal cocoon are from tropical and subtropical countries in general, especially China, Malaysia, Singapore, Pakistan, India, Nigeria, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and South Africa. Crampy abdominal pain, vomiting after . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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Arch Surg. 2006;141(9):943.
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