Acute gastric perforation after acid ingestion

Pediatric gastric perforation beyond neonatal period: 8-year experience with 20 patients

BACKGROUND

To describe the characteristics, treatments, and prognosis of pediatric gastric perforation patients beyond neonatal period.

METHODS

Twenty pediatric patients beyond neonatal period were included in this study. Medical records were reviewed and clinical characteristics were analyzed. According to the outcomes, patients were divided into the survival group and the death group. Death time was documented, and survival patients were followed up. The degree of severity was calculated using pediatric critical illness score (PCIS). Differences between the two groups were analyzed by the Student's t-test, Mann-Whitney test and Chi-square test appropriately.

RESULTS

Gastric perforation was diagnosed in 20 pediatric patients beyond neonatal period, including 6 males (30%) and 14 females (70%), with the age of 37.18 (15.90, 107.12) months, and the range was from 4.30 months to 14.17 years old. They had different manifestations, etiologies, sites of perforation and surgery procedures. Among the 20 cases, 14 (70%) survived and 6 (30%) died. Age, gender, length and number of perforation had no statistically difference between the two groups. However, PCIS, ischemia of gastrointestinal wall, and transmural necrosis of gastric wall were statistically different. For the survival group, during a follow-up period of 50 (36, 68) months, ranging from 2 months to 8 years and 7 months, one patient had a second-time perforation, another 3 patients had brain injury symptoms, and the rest 10 patients had good quality of lives.

CONCLUSIONS

Gastric perforation of pediatric patients beyond neonatal period causes a mortality of 30% on this study. Spontaneous great curvature of gastric wall perforation has the highest morbidity. Low PCIS predicts for unfavorable prognosis. Most of the survival patients have satisfactory living quality after operation.

Acid and the basis for cellular plasticity and reprogramming in gastric repair and cancer

Subjected to countless daily injuries, the stomach still functions as a remarkably efficient digestive organ and microbial filter. In this Review, we follow the lead of the earliest gastroenterologists who were fascinated by the antiseptic and digestive powers of gastric secretions. We propose that it is easiest to understand how the stomach responds to injury by stressing the central role of the most important gastric secretion, acid. The stomach follows two basic patterns of adaptation. The superficial response is a pattern whereby the surface epithelial cells migrate and rapidly proliferate to repair erosions induced by acid or other irritants. The stomach can also adapt through a glandular response when the source of acid is lost or compromised (that is, the process of oxyntic atrophy). We primarily review the mechanisms governing the glandular response, which is characterized by a metaplastic change in cellular differentiation known as spasmolytic polypeptide-expressing metaplasia (SPEM). We propose that the stomach, like other organs, exhibits marked cellular plasticity: the glandular response involves reprogramming mature cells to serve as auxiliary stem cells that replace lost cells. Unfortunately, such plasticity might mean that the gastric epithelium undergoes cycles of differentiation and de-differentiation that increase the risk of accumulating cancer-predisposing mutations.

Gastric perforation after corrosive ingestion

PURPOSE

To describe a series of children with gastric perforation (GP) after corrosive ingestion.

METHODS

Case notes of children treated for GP complicating corrosive ingestion between May 2001 and April 2010 were retrospectively reviewed.

RESULTS

Seventy-six children with corrosive ingestion were treated during the study period of which 5 (6.6%) developed GP. This complication was evident on admission in one case and developed within 48 h in the others. The major clinical findings were abdominal pain, tenderness, and distension with radiologic evidence of pneumoperitoneum. Associated pathology included necrosis of the abdominal esophagus in one case and duodenal perforation in another. Two cases have died during surgery while three survived with free of complications related to GP repair. Two patients developed gastric outlet obstruction (one with an esophageal stricture) on follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS

GP is a rare but major complication of corrosive ingestion. Children who swallow corrosives should be closely monitored and pediatric surgeons should be aware of this potential early complication. The possibility of associated pathology should be considered when undertaking surgical repair.