Anorectal malformations comprise a spectrum of disease and the majority of patients have one or more abnormalities that affect other systems. In evaluating a newborn with anorectal malformation, the decision regarding the need for a colostomy and detection and management of any life threatening associated anomalies are thetwo most important considerations. Perineal inspection provides the clue to the surgical approach in about 80-90% of male and 90% of female newborn baby. The remaining patients who do not show any clinical evidence need radiologic evaluation to decide whether a colostomy should be performed. In most cases the decision to make a colostomy should not be made until the baby is 20 to 24 hours old and evaluation to rule out the presence of associated anomalies completed. A divided colostomy at the junction of the descending and sigmoid colon is recommended for anorectal malformations.

No abstract available.

A clinical review was done of 31 children with blunt liver injury who were admitted to the Department of Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital , between 1981 and 1990. Seventeen of the 31 children required laparotomy(11 primary repairs, 4 lobectomies, 2 segmentectomies). There were two deaths after laparotomy, one due to associated severe head injury and another due to multiorgan failure. The remaining 14 children, who were hemodynamically stable after initial resuscitation and who did not have signs of other associated intraabdominal injuries, were managed by nonoperative treatment. Patients were observed in a pediatric intensive care unit for at least 48 hours with repeated abdominal clinical evaluations, laboratory studies, and monitoring of vital signs. The hospital courses in all cases were uneventful and there were no late complication. A follow-up computed tomography of 7 patients showed resolution of the injury in all. The authors believe that, for children with blunt liver injuries, nonoperative management is safe and appropriate if carried out under careful continuous surgical observation in a pediatric intensive care unit.

Although nonoperative reduction plays a major role in the management of uncomplicated intussusception in the pediatric age group, surgical treatment is still a necessary alternative when nonoperative reduction is unsuccessfuL The author analyzed the clinical features of 68 patients requiring operation in order to identify factors which might influence the type of operative management. A nine-year experience at Ewha Womans University Hospital was reviewed, and the findings compared to previous reports. Barium was used for the initial reduction attempt in 33 cases, saline in 35. Manual reduction by milking at operation achieved success in 41 cases(60.3%). Fifteen cases(22.1 %) required resection of bowel, and 12 patients(l7.6%) were found to have spontaneous and complete reduction of the intussusception at operation. Two cases had pathologic leading points. There were no perforations due to nonoperative reduction. There were no significant differences in demographic data, clinical findings, laboratory data, and anatomic type of intussusception between barium and saline reduction groups. However, a significant number of cases with spontaneous reduction were in saline reduction group(p<0.05). There was a slight chance of spontaneous reduction in infants under 6 month of age(p<0.001). Age under 6 month, body temperaure over 38℃, symptom over 24 hours, and ileo-colic and ileo-ileo-colic intussusception contributed significantly to the necessity for bowel resection(p<0.05-0.001). The author believes that the age, body temperature, duration of illness, and anatomic type of intussusception strongly influence operative management.