Surgical treatment for congenital duodenal obstruction.

Thirty-four congenital duodenal obstructions (19 duodenal atresia, 7 duodenal web, 7 annular pancreas and one duodenal stenosis) were surgically treated in Siriraj Hospital between 1990 and 1999. Eleven per cent of duodenal atresia had no bile-stained vomiting. Duodenal web which received web excision and duodenoplasty in 43 per cent of cases, also presented with bile-stained vomiting. Duodeno-duodenostomy, duodeno-jejunostomy and web excision with duodenoplasty were performed in 29, 2 and 3 patients respectively. Duodeno-duodenostomy and web excision with duodenoplasty had no difference in the feeding capability. There was no statistically significant difference in duration of TPN, ability to be early fed, post-operative onset of full feeding and hospital stay between diamond-shaped (n = 18) and side-to-side (n = 11) duodeno-duodenostomy. Although transanastomotic feeding tube (n = 4) decreased a percentage of TPN requirement and made early feeding possible, the onset of full feeding, duration of TPN and hospital stay were not different from those who had no transanastomotic tube (n = 30).

Necrotizing enterocolitis: a comparison between full-term and pre-term neonates.

A retrospective study comparing 16 full-term and 18 pre-term neonates with NEC operated on at Siriraj Hospital between 1987 and 1999 is presented. Major risk factors leading to NEC in full-term neonates included sepsis, SGA, birth asphyxia, severe jaundice requiring exchange transfusion and chorioamnionitis. Although full-term neonates developed NEC earlier than pre-term neonates (8.56 days vs 12.78 days), the average ages of operation in both groups were the same. There was no difference in CBC and bacteriological culture's results between term and pre-term patients. The decision to conduct operative treatments for full-term neonates with NEC was mostly based on only clinical signs of peritonitis (56.25%) before the pneumoperitoneum developed (31.25%). Ileo-caecal region was the most common site of bowel necrosis in both premature and full-term infants. Although term infants had a better 3-month survival rate than pre-term neonates (75% and 61% respectively), both groups had the same surgical complication rates.

Sacrococcygeal teratoma: 25 year experience.

We retrospectively studied all thirty-five children (M 6, F 29) with sacrococcygeal teratomas admitted to Siriraj Hospital between 1974 and 1999. Although an abdominal delivery is recommended for lesions greater than 5 cm to avoid dystocia, the average diameter of masses which required interventions from dystocia (n = 3) was not different from vaginal delivery (n = 27). All except two first presented with sacral masses recognized at birth. One patient presented with an abdominal mass and the last one was diagnosed after suffering from difficulty in urination. Ninety-seven per cent of cases were completely excised initially (32 sacral, 2 abdomino-sacral approaches), however, six patients required other treatment for recurrent diseases. One mature teratoma recurrence was resected. Two patients who had malignant recurrences following complete benign excisions, died from advanced malignancy. Four presented with malignancy initially. Wound infection, bladder atony and UTI were the most common complications postoperatively. Advanced malignancy was the major cause of death. No patient died directly from the procedure.

Hemodynamic responses to captopril during splenectomy in thalassemic children.

Splenectomy in beta-thalassemic children is frequently accompanied by perioperative hypertension which occasionally is followed by convulsion. The efficacy of captopril in attenuating the hypertensive response to splenectomy was investigated in 82 thalassemic children. The control group, consisting of 40 patients, received intravenous furosemide (1 mg/kg) preoperatively; whereas, 42 children were randomly allocated into 2 groups to receive oral captopril (0.7 mg/kg) or a combination of captopril (0.7 mg/kg) and furosemide (1 mg/kg) before the operation. Before anesthetic induction, both systolic and diastolic arterial pressures in the captopril and the combined groups were significantly lower than the furosemide group (P < 0.001), whereas, the heart rates in all groups were comparable. Changes in arterial pressure in response to the operation were significantly smaller in the combined group when compared with the other two groups (P < 0.001). Immediate postoperative hypertension requiring additional management occurred in 20 per cent of the furosemide group, and 14.3 per cent in the other two groups. One patient in the combined group had a convulsion in association with hypertension. The authors conclude that captopril combined with furosemide effectively controls intraoperative hypertension in thalassemic children undergoing splenectomy; however, postoperative hypertension remains common, and needs appropriate treatment immediately.

Does furosemide prevent hypertension during perioperative splenectomy in thalassemic children?

Hemodynamic changes of 50 thalassemic children who had splenectomy under general anesthesia were compared to 40 identical patients who, in addition, received intravenous furosemide 1 mg/kg immediate preoperation. During the anesthetic process, both groups showed a significant increase of heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure more than the preanesthetic values. Hemodynamic variables in the furosemide group declined toward normal range on termination of anesthesia, whereas, the other group's variables were still significantly higher than their control. During the first 24 hours postoperatively, 20 per cent of the furosemide group had blood pressure rising higher than 130/90 mmHg, while 18 per cent was observed in the other group. Antihypertensive drugs were given to reduce the blood pressure in both groups. None of the patients in the furosemide group demonstrated any abnormal neurological symptoms, but 3 out of 50 patients in the other group developed convulsion. We, therefore, conclude that circulatory volume reduction with furosemide does not prevent hypertension during perioperative splenectomy in thalassemic children. However, it's role in prevention of neurological abnormalities needs to be further investigated.