Dynamic computed tomography is useful for the diagnosis and colonoscopic treatment of colonic diverticular bleeding

We investigated whether emergency dynamic computed tomography (CT) is helpful to identify bleeding colonic diverticulum treatable by colonoscopy. We enrolled 95 consecutive patients given diagnoses of colonic diverticular bleeding at Hiroshima City Hospital in the present study, of whom 60 underwent CT before colonoscopy (CT group), and 35 underwent colonoscopy alone (CS group). In the CT group, bleeding diverticula were identified and treated by colonoscopy in 31 of 32 (96.9%) patients in whom extravasation was detected by CT. The interval between bleeding being recognized and CT (median 1.0 hours) in patients in whom extravasation was detected by CT was shorter than that in whom extravasation was not detected (median 5.0 hours). To identify and treat bleeding diverticula by colonoscopy, the use of emergency dynamic CT prior to colonoscopy is recommended.