On the third day of my clinical course I had a 72 year old female African American patient, a retired high school teacher who was hospitalized for acute diverticulitis with perforation. She is diabetic and has a medical and surgical history of diverticulitis, high cholesterol, non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), hysterectomy, and scoliosis. She has been on a clear liquid diet since she was admitted, so she was NPO NPO for that day's CT scan. When I was assigned to take care of a patient with acute diverticulitis, the first thing in my mind was that she would have severe abdominal pain and high fever due to an infection because my aunt had the same disease. To my surprise, he stated a score of 0/10 on a pain scale of 0 to 10. Blood sugar and vital signs were normal, except respiratory which was 22. All laboratory test results were normal, including blood cells white. The patient's concern was that she would not be able to have a bowel movement. She was treated with Colace, a stool softener, morphine for pain, sulfrane for nausea and azactam, an antibiotic. Diverticulosis is a disease of the diverticulum. This occurs when the colon wall is passed through the mucosa. These are small hernias of the mucosa that protrude through the smooth muscle and layers of the intestine along the opening formed by the vasa recta in the wall of the colon. The causes of diverticulitis are still unknown but they develop after a micro or macro perforation of the diverticulum. Peritonitis is the final consequence of intestinal rupture in case of extensive perforation. Clinically, diverticulosis can be asymptomatic or symptomatic, uncomplicated, and without evidence of bleeding or inflammation. Signs and symptoms include palpable mass and tenderness mostly in the center of the paper, seven 6-ounce glasses of fluids each day, especially for patients taking pharmaceutical fiber supplements. Works Cited Ferzoco, KH ( 2010). Diverticulitis of the small intestine. The New England Journal of Medicine. 327:302-7Juchems, A. A. (2010). Long-term management of diverticulitis in young patients. Diseases of the colon and rectum. 58:627-629. Marinella, L. B. et al: (2010). Acute diverticulitis. The New England Journal of Medicine. 327: 1521-1526 Painter, P. V. (2009). Diverticulitis. Gastroenterology Clinics of North America. 18:357-385. Spivak, W. K., & deSouza, J. M. (2008). Diverticulitis of the right colon. Digestive system diseases and sciences. 49: 350-358 Wilcox, C. V. (2009). Limitation in CT diagnosis of acute diverticulitis: comparison of CT, contrast enema, pathological findings in 16 patients. American Journal of Roentgenology. 201:381-385.