Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Patients Undergoing Emergency Surgery for Intestinal Obstruction at a Tertiary Care Centre in Eastern India

Background: Intestinal obstruction is a common surgical emergency and an important cause of morbidity and mortality in low-and middle-income countries, including India.This study aimed to evaluate the clinical, demographic, intraoperative, and postoperative factors influencing outcomes in patients undergoing emergency surgery for intestinal obstruction in a tertiary care centre in Eastern India.Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted in the Department of General Surgery, Tata Main Hospital, Jamshedpur, from April 2023 to March 2025.Ninety-one patients aged ≥18 years who underwent emergency surgery for intestinal obstruction were enrolled.Demographic, clinical, laboratory, intraoperative, and postoperative data were recorded on a structured proforma, and patients were followed up for 30 days after discharge.Data were analysed using SPSS version 21 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY), with p<0.05 considered statistically significant.Results: The mean age of presentation was highest in the 31-40 and 51-60 year groups (19.78% each), with an overall male predominance (70.33%).Adhesions and bands were the leading cause of obstruction (41.75%), followed by hernia (19.78%), malignancy (12.08%), and tuberculosis (12.08%).Abdominal pain and distension were present in all patients (100%), and small bowel obstruction was the most common intraoperative diagnosis (86.0%).Release of adhesions (56.04%) and resection anastomosis (50.54%) were the most frequently performed procedures.Postoperative morbidity occurred in 27.47% of patients, most commonly due to paralytic ileus (12.08%), wound infection (9.89%), and sepsis (8.79%).Mortality was 5.49% (5/91) and occurred in patients with delayed presentation, malignancy, mesenteric ischaemia, or volvulus.Conclusion: Adhesions and bands were the leading cause of intestinal obstruction in this cohort.Delayed presentation, malignant obstruction, and mesenteric ischaemia were observed among patients with adverse outcomes.These findings highlight the importance of timely diagnosis, appropriate surgical management, and careful perioperative monitoring in patients undergoing emergency surgery for intestinal obstruction.