Long-term prognosis of successfully operated oesophageal atresia-with aspects on physical and psychological development.
From 1966 to 1973, 43 oesophageal atresia patients with no other significant anomalies underwent successful anastomosis. The late mortalities of the 5 patients were due to the complications of gastro-oesophageal reflux and tracheal problems. These deaths and all the serious complications occurred before the age of 3 years. The survivors were followed up for a mean of 12.7 years and 34 of the 38 long-term survivors were re-examined by the author. The subjective results of the remaining 4 patients were obtained by means of a questionnaire. The results, according to Desjardins et al, were: "excellent" 31, "good" 6 and, "fair" 1. The growth of the patients was normal and the majority of them also possessed normal intelligence and body image. Oesophagograms revealed pathological peristalsis in every patient but only 1 of them demonstrated a somewhat narrowed anastomosis. Very few patients, however, complained of symptoms arising from the abnormal motility of the oesophagus. The long-term prognosis and the quality of life of oesophageal atresia patients seems good after the frequent problems which might occur in the early years have been overcome.
D000293:Adolescent; D001828:Body Image; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004933:Esophageal Atresia / Q000523:psychology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007360:Intelligence; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D011379:Prognosis