Colonic atresia and Hirschsprung's disease: Importance of histologic examination of the distal bowel

Colonic Atresia: Association with Other Anomalies

“…Although this association might be coincidental, three theoretical mechanisms are described [3]. Some authors believe that CA leads to HD where the atretic segment acts as a mechanical barrier against the Cranio-caudal migration of neural crest cells into the bowel wall [20].…”

“…Thus, the aganglionic segment starts immediately distal to the atresia. However, in some infants with ileal or colonic atresia, ganglion cells were found distal to the atretic segment [3,[20][21][22][23]. In a second theory, HD is believed to induce CA.…”

“…Unawareness of that association while establishing a primary anastomosis usually leads to anastomotic dehiscence and complicated postoperative period [3]. In this work, we represent our experience in managing CA cases with its associated anomalies.…”

Association of colonic atresia and Hirschsprung’s disease in the newborn: report of a new case and review of the literature

“…However, if associated with unrecognized HD, a primary or secondary anastomosis without resection of the affected bowel is doomed to fail. Postoperative anastomotic leakage [2,13,20,26,27] or functional obstruction [2,4,10,11,16,[19][20][21][22]25] will necessitate one or more reinterventions. The association of HD with intestinal atresia is often only recognized at this moment (Tables 1, 2).…”

“…Although this association might be coincidental, three theoretical mechanisms are described [1,22]. Some authors believe that CA leads to HD.…”