A Clinical Review of Fifteen Years' Pediatric Surgical Diseases

Chung, Sang Young; Choi, Soo Jin Na

Abstract

PURPOSE
Pediatric surgery includes a large portion of neonatal patients who are exposed to a high operative risk and mortality. The clinical analyses of pediatric surgical patients, under 15 years of age, were evaluated. METHODS: A total 3, 512 patients underwent an operation at the Division of Pediatric Surgery, the Department of Surgery, Chonnam National University Hospital, between January 1988 and December 2002. The patients' medical records were retrospectively reviewed for the clinical findings. RESULTS: The total number of operations in the pediatric age for all specialties was 22, 180 (13.4%). The total number of operations, including those performed on adults, was 164, 948. The under 5 years of age group was the most common to undergo an operation (48.8%). The number of operations at the Division of Pediatric Surgery was 3, 512 (15.9%) out of total 22, 180 for all the pediatric specialties. 40.7% (1, 427/ 3, 512) of the patients under 1 year of age underwent pediatric surgery. The most prevalent diseases in neonates were hypertrophic pyloric stenosis (18.0%) and anorectal malformation (16.4%). Infants older than neonates commonly underwent an operation for an inguinal hernia (34.3%) and intussusception (19.8%). The total mortality rate in the neonatal intensive care unit was 26.1%, with Gastroschisis having the highest mortality. CONCLUSION: Specially trained pediatric surgeons need both a thorough understanding of the neonatal physiology and surgical skills, because of the high incidence of the neonatal surgery and the high mortality rate.