Acquired ileal atresia in infancy: report of two cases.
Two infants, aged 3 months and 4 months, with acquired ileal atresia in the distal ileum are described. Both of them presented with features of intestinal obstruction following a diarrhoeal episode. In both patients the time interval between the onset of symptoms and detection of atresia at surgery was very short, i.e. 2 weeks. In our opinion, strangulation with subsequent resorption of gangrenous gut could have been the underlying mechanism in both patients. However, a short interval between initiation of symptomatology and detection of atresia prompted us to postulate a thromboembolic phenomenon as the cause of these lesions. While in one patient intussusception was noted on sonography, in the other there was no clear-cut aetiology present except for a high-lying caecum with a long mesentery that might have led to volvulus. We have reviewed the pertinent literature of this very rare sequela of gut inflammation.
Ratan
Simmi K
SK
Department of Paediatric Surgery, Pt BD Sharma Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Rohtak, Haryana, India. drjohnsimmi@yahoo.com
Rattan
K N
KN
Mathur
S K
SK
Maheshwari
Jayant
J
Sehgal
Tapeshwar
T
D017668:Age of Onset; D006801:Humans; D007077:Ileal Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000601:surgery*; D007223:Infant; D007409:Intestinal Atresia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D011859:Radiography