title: Is conservative treatment with antibiotics the correct strategy for management of right colonic diverticulitis?: a prospective study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The goals of this study were to identify whether conservative treatment with antibiotics in right colonic diverticulitis (RCD) patients, our empirical method used until now, is adequate and to determine how the natural history of RCD is affected by conservative treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was designed as a case-control study. Group I was comprised of 12 patients who were managed conservatively, and clinical data were retrospectively collected. In group II, a total of 49 patients, diagnosed by using diagnostic criteria for RCD and managed conservatively, were prospectively included.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The period of fasting was 2.7 days, and the hospital stay was 4.6 days in all patients. The intravenous and the oral antibiotic periods were 3.8 days and 9.8 days, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences in treatment results between the two groups except the duration of fasting and the hospitalization, and there were no complications under conservative treatment. Eight patients (13.1%) had recurrent diverticulitis during the follow-up period. The recurrence risk showed no significant difference between the groups. The RCD-free period after management was 60.1 months, and patients with recurrent RCD were treated by conservative treatment or laparoscopic surgery.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Conservative treatment with antibiotics is the optimal treatment of choice for RCD and shows no increase in complications.
authors: Department of Surgery, The Catholic University of Korea School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors: Tae Jung
authors: TJ
authors: Kim
authors: In Kyu
authors: IK
authors: Lee
authors: Jong Kyung
authors: JK
authors: Park
authors: Yoon Suk
authors: YS
authors: Lee
authors: Youn
authors: Y
authors: Si
authors: Hun
authors: H
authors: Jung
authors: Hyung Jin
authors: HJ
authors: Kim
authors: Sang Chul
authors: SC
authors: Lee
authors: Dae Young
authors: DY
authors: Cheung
authors: Lee D
authors: LD
authors: Gorden
authors: Seung Taek
authors: ST
authors: Oh