Wilhelm Fabricius Hildanus, a German surgeon, first described the presence of a small bowel diverticulum in 1598. However, the diverticulum is named for Johann Meckel, a German anatomist, who further described the anatomy and embryology in 1809. Meckel diverticulum is…
Alimentary tract duplications have been described for hundreds of years, and multiple terms have been used in the literature. The term duplication of the alimentary tract was coined by William Ladd in 1937. He described three common findings: a well-developed…
Intussusception is the most frequent cause of bowel obstruction in infants and toddlers. It is an acquired invagination of the proximal bowel (intussusceptum) into the distal bowel (intussuscipiens). It was first described in 1674 by Paul Barbette of Amsterdam, defined…
Perianal and Perirectal Abscess Perianal or perirectal abscesses are often encountered during infancy. The abscess typically presents as a fluctuant, tender mass in the perianal region ( Fig. 37.1 ). A history of stool abnormalities is typically not elicited. Perianal…
Fecal incontinence can have serious implications on the social development of children and young adults, which, in turn, can provoke serious psychological and behavioral sequelae. It is a problem that affects more children than previously appreciated, including those born with…
“Imperforate anus” has been a described entity for centuries. In fact, an early description suggested that “an infant whose anus is not visible should be rubbed with oil and stood in the sun, and where it shows transparent it should…
Hirschsprung disease (HD), also known as “congenital megacolon,” is characterized by the absence of ganglion cells in the myenteric and submucosal plexuses of the intestine. The first known description of this condition was by ancient Hindu surgeons in the Shushruta…
Despite nearly two centuries of recognition and five decades of increasingly intensive study, necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) remains an unsolved problem. Reports from France as early as the 1820s describing “gangrenous necrosis” of the intestine were echoed in Vienna 30 years…
Intestinal obstruction is one of the most common admitting diagnoses to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), accounting for as many as one-third of all admissions. Failure to pass meconium within the first 24–48 hours of life, feeding intolerance, abdominal…
Normal rotation of the intestine requires transformation from a simple, straight alimentary tube into the mature fixed and folded configuration normally present at birth. Through precise embryologic events, the duodenojejunal junction becomes fixed in the left upper abdomen while the…