Typhoid perforation of the intestine.

We reviewed 91 cases of intestinal perforation complicating typhoid fever treated at a rural hospital in Haiti over a ten-year period. Surgical management involved simple primary closure of the perforation (80 patients), small-bowel resection with anastomosis (two patients), simple drainage of the peritoneal cavity (two patients), and serosal patching of the perforation (one patient). Six patients died before surgery. The mortality was 30.8% for all 91 cases but 21.2% for those treated with primary closure of the perforation. We also reviewed the literature pertaining to the management of intestinal perforation complicating typhoid fever.