Progress in management of typhoid perforation

Case fatality rate (CFR) for typhoid perforation (TP) has been on gradual but variable decline world wide. This review highlights the progress in management of TP from 1960 including the controversies, current principles of management and the advances associated with the best results of treatment. This is a review of publications on TP from 1960 to 2010 principally from Medline and Ovid databases. Main search terms used are typhoid and perforation. The median CFR by decade was estimated from studies that reported CFR. With advances in surgery and supportive care, median CFR for TP declined from over 50% in 1960 to single digits in the last decade in some countries but with West Africa lagging behind at 16%. Variations in CFR are attributed to differences in perforation-operation interval and quality of care. Opportunities now exist for patients with TP to recover from the disease but priority remains with prevention of enteric fever in endemic areas.