title: Gastrointestinal perforations in neonatal period: experience over 10 years.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This report describes our experience concerning gastrointestinal perforation due to necrotizing enterocolitis during a 10-year period.
  
  
  METHODS
  The cases of 27 gastrointestinal perforations, which were treated in our hospital, were retrospectively reviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All patients were neonates and infants up to the age of 2 months. The study population consisted of 16 boys (59.3%) and 11 girls (40.7%). Twenty-one neonates (77.8%) were preterm, and the median gestational age was 28 weeks. Twenty-four cases (88.9%) of perforation underwent laparotomy. The overall mortality was 63%. Seventy-six percent of the preterm neonates and only 16.7% of the full-term neonates died.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Gastrointestinal perforation is still connected with a high mortality rate, with necrotizing enterocolitis being the main cause of death. The neonates who did not undergo surgery all died.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Surgery, University Hospital of Heraklion, Crete, Greece. g.sakell@med.uoc.gr
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sakellaris
authors.forename: Nikolaos
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Partalis
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Dede
authors.forename: Athanasios
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Alegakis
authors.forename: Chrisa
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Seremeti
authors.forename: Eftichia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Korakaki
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Giannakopoulou
mesh_terms: D002423:Cause of Death; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007416:Intestinal Perforation / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery*; D007813:Laparotomy; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome