Gut Malrotation in a Human Cadaver: Exploration Into the Prevention and Screening of Undiagnosed Malrotation in Adults

Malrotation is a congenital anomaly that results from the abnormal rotation of the gut during fetal development. Malrotation may be missed in early life and can present later with non-specific, chronic abdominal symptoms and decreased quality of life and in some cases can lead to serious bowel complications. Most adult cases are discovered incidentally on imaging or during surgery. An 82-year-old male cadaver was identified as having probable malrotation of the intestines. The performance of a previous surgical procedure could not be confirmed due to a lack of medical and surgical history. The cadaver dissection raised the question regarding the screening modalities used to reliably identify malrotations in infants and adults. Implementing a standardized reliable screening tool in infants or adults complaining of chronic abdominal pain could largely reduce the incidence of undiagnosed malrotation. Along with the development of a screening tool, increasing understanding of the clinical presentation of malrotation in adults could help identify undiagnosed cases earlier, which can reduce morbidity and mortality in these patients.