We present the case of a 77-year-old patient with a history of arterial hypertension and ischaemic heart disease who was under study due to non-specific abdominal discomfort and anaemia of recent onset. He attended our centre on a scheduled basis for colonoscopy after bowel preparation with Bohn's evacuating solution. During the procedure, he suffered an intestinal perforation at the level of the sigmoid colon, for which reason he underwent urgent surgery and was found to have a perforation 1 centimetre long with clean edges that was sutured by simple suture, leaving a penrose drain. He was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the immediate postoperative period.
On arrival at the ICU, broad-spectrum antibiotics were administered and microbiological samples were taken. Among the complementary tests performed, a serial quantification of PCT and C-reactive protein (CRP) was carried out, with normal CRP values (0.25 mg/dl) and slightly elevated PCT values (0.6 ng/ml). Measurements taken 2 hours and 12 hours after the patient's admission to the ICU showed a significant increase in PCT values (12.73 and 220 ng/ml) while CRP values were only slightly elevated (0.8 and 15.5 mg/dl). The culture of the abdominal drainage isolated Enterobacter cloacae sensitive to the antibiotic regimen administered. Subsequent evolution was favourable and he was discharged 72 hours after admission to the ICU.