16/01/2026
In this video, Dr. Vine explains what diverticulitis is, how he treats it, and when surgery might be required.
Dr. Vine is an Attending Surgeon and Associate Clinical Professor of Surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.
To make an appointment for a consultation call 212-879-6677
Video Transcript: Understanding Diverticulitis
[00:00:00]
[Mild, upbeat background music begins]
[A male doctor in blue scrubs is centered in the frame. A text overlay reads: "What is diverticulitis and how is it treated?"]
Dr Vine: Diverticulitis is an infection or inflammatory condition of the colon. It can occur on the left or the right side, though it's mostly on the left side. Younger women can get right-sided diverticulitis.
These are little out-pouchings of the colon where the blood vessels enter the wall, so there's essentially a weakness in the wall of the colon. You can get an infection because the colon wall only contains two layers of the four in a diverticulum. So, a small piece of stool that gets stuck in a diverticulum can actually erode and perforate, causing bacteria to escape from the inside of the bowel where it should not escape from.
[00:00:53]
[The doctor continues explaining, gesturing slightly for emphasis]
Doctor Vine: Diverticulitis is treated primarily by antibiotics at first. If, however, someone has perforated diverticulitis with what we call peritonitis—and they have infection and even f***l material that has escaped from the colon into their abdominal cavity—then they might need emergency surgery. This can sometimes be done laparoscopically, but may need to be done with old-fashioned open surgery.
[00:01:24]
[The video concludes with a black screen and the CapCut logo]
