Postoperative intussusception in children: a report of 51 cases

Abstract

Objective To summarize the clinical features, risk factors and anatomic patterns of pediatric postoperative intussusception (POI). Methods Clinical data were retrospectively reviewed for 51 POI cases.Variables analyzed included patient demographics, time of occurrence, type of intussusception and surgical approaches. Results Among them, 33 were aged under 2 years, 46 cases occurred in the first week, 49 cases occurred in 2 weeks after initial surgery and 17 cases underwent retroperitoneal operations.As expected, ileoileal and jejunojejunal intussusceptions were the most common forms.Manual reduction was successful in 46 cases.All 51 patients recovered after a second operation. Conclusions Though rare, postoperative intussusception is a serious condition after abdominal procedures in infants and children.Most cases occur within 1 week after primary surgery.Small bowel intussusception is a predominant variant of this complication.Early use of ultrasonography may confirm the diagnosis of POI.Prompt laparotomy should be performed for avoiding intestinal ischemia and consequential necrosis.Obstruction may be normally relieved by manual reduction. Key words: Intussusception; Intestinal resection; Prognosis