Operative management of duodenal atresia

The management of duodenal atresia (DA) in two Scandinavian pediatric centers is reported. A total of 67 infants with DA were retrospectively analyzed. A high incidence of associated anomalies was present, including Down's syndrome in 40% and cardiac anomalies in 20% of the infants. No immediate postoperative mortality was noted. The operative procedures were duodenoduodenostomy and duodenojejunostomy. Follow-up did not disclose any frequent gastrointestinal disturbances or differences in postoperative complications when the two procedures were compared. The prognosis for these patients is thus determined exclusively by the presence of associated anomalies, especially Down's syndrome and cardiac malformations.