ASCRS Guidelines for Rectovaginal Fistula

In August 2022, the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS) published guidelines on the management of rectovaginal fistula (RVF),^[19] which included the following recommendations:

Nonoperative management is typically recommended for the initial care of obstetrical rectovaginal fistula and may also be considered for other benign and minimally symptomatic fistulas.
A draining seton may facilitate resolution of acute inflammation or infection associated with rectovaginal fistulas.
Endorectal advancement flap with or without sphincteroplasty is the procedure of choice for most patients with a rectovaginal fistula.
Episioproctotomy may be used to repair obstetrical or cryptoglandular rectovaginal fistulas in patients with anal sphincter defects.
A gracilis muscle or bulbocavernosus (Martius) flap is typically recommended for recurrent or otherwise complex rectovaginal fistula.
Rectovaginal fistulas that result from colorectal anastomotic complications often require a transabdominal approach for repair.
Completion proctectomy with or without colonic pull-through or coloanal anastomosis may be required to treat radiation-related or recurrent complex rectovaginal fistula.

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Dana Taylor, MD, FACS Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine; Consulting Surgeon, University General Surgeons, PC

Dana Taylor, MD, FACS is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Chest Physicians, American College of Surgeons, Southeastern Surgical Congress, Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, American Medical Association

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Coauthor(s)

Jan Rakinic, MD Chief, Section of Colorectal Surgery, Program Director, SIU Residency in Colorectal Surgery, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine

Jan Rakinic, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Surgeons, American Medical Association, American Medical Women's Association, American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, Illinois State Medical Society

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Specialty Editor Board

Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Pharmacy; Editor-in-Chief, Medscape Drug Reference

Disclosure: Received salary from Medscape for employment. for: Medscape.

David L Morris, MD, PhD, FRACS Professor, Department of Surgery, St George Hospital, University of New South Wales, Australia

David L Morris, MD, PhD, FRACS is a member of the following medical societies: British Society of Gastroenterology

Disclosure: Received none from RFA Medical for director; Received none from MRC Biotec for director.

Chief Editor

John Geibel, MD, MSc, DSc, AGAF Vice Chair and Professor, Department of Surgery, Section of Gastrointestinal Medicine, Professor, Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Yale University School of Medicine; Director of Surgical Research, Department of Surgery, Yale-New Haven Hospital; American Gastroenterological Association Fellow; Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine

John Geibel, MD, MSc, DSc, AGAF is a member of the following medical societies: American Gastroenterological Association, American Physiological Society, American Society of Nephrology, Association for Academic Surgery, International Society of Nephrology, New York Academy of Sciences, Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Additional Contributors

Lewis J Kaplan, MD, FACS, FCCM, FCCP Professor of Surgery, Division of Trauma, Surgical Critical Care, and Emergency Surgery, Department of Surgery, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania; Section Chief, Surgical Critical Care, Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center

Lewis J Kaplan, MD, FACS, FCCM, FCCP is a member of the following medical societies: American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, American College of Surgeons, Association for Academic Surgery, Association for Surgical Education, Connecticut State Medical Society, Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, International Trauma Anesthesia and Critical Care Society, Society for the Advancement of Blood Management, Society of Critical Care Medicine, Surgical Infection Society

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Acknowledgements

The authors and editors of Medscape Drugs & Diseases gratefully acknowledge the contributions of previous author Carol EH Scott-Conner, MD, PhD, to the development and writing of this article.

Rectovaginal Fistula Guidelines

ASCRS Guidelines for Rectovaginal Fistula

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