| Theme | Digestive Diseases to Know -- Esophagus | |
|---|---|---|
| Title | Congenital Esophageal Atresia | |
| Publish Date | 1998/04 | |
| Author | Hitoshi Ohsawa | Department of Medicine, Teikyo University School of Medicine |
| [ Summary ] | Congenital esophageal atresia is an embryological defect occurring during the fifth to eighth week of intrauterine life. Many types are observed morphologically and may be accompanied by tracheo-esophageal fistula, or other types of anomalies. The earliest symptome of this anomalie is polyhydramnios in the pregnant mother. So, we can have early diagnosis of this anomaly by arising abdominal ultra-sonography, abdominal CT or MRI. We may find intragastric gas or another accompanied anomalies. Directly after delivery in these cases, we may find a great deal of salivary fluid in the subject's mouth, frequent vomiting of milk, cyanosios, dyspnea and pulmonary complications, such as pneumonia caused by swallowing difficulties and pulmonary atelectasis. Pulmonary complications are very important, because they are the main cause of death before and after operations. Radical treatment of this anomaly is through surgical means. Various types of operations were performed to treat this anomaly depending on the types involved. Some analysis of these results and the proguosis after operations shows that the most important points concerning successful treatment are early diagnosis before delivery, if possible, pre-operative and post operative management of pulmonary complications and electrolyte imbalance, full exchange of the information about the case between the attending physician and an experienced pert surgeon, and finally, early transportion of the patient to a qualified surgeon. |
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