Ileal perforation and transanal protrusion of the peritoneal tube in a boy with a ventriculoperitoneal shunt and literature review

Ventriculoperitoneal shunting (VPS), a widely used procedure for treating hydrocephalus, may cause various complications, including mechanical failure, shunt infection, and intra-abdominal complications. Among these, intestinal perforation is rare. Patients suffering from intestinal perforation may be asymptomatic or present symptoms, such as abdominal pain, vomiting, fever, abdominal abscess, and peritonitis. However, such patients rarely manifest transanal protrusion of the peritoneal tube, which results in bowel perforation in the colon. In this report, we present the case of a 3-year-old boy with VPS-induced small-intestinal perforation and peritoneal-tube transanal protrusion. Additionally, a review of the literature on VPS-induced small-intestinal perforations revealed no similar cases.