Congenital Ileal Atresia With Gangrene, Perforation and Peritonitis in a Newborn Infant

Many cases of congenital atresia of the intestine below the duodenum have been reported, but there have been relatively few operative recoveries. The cause of the high mortality is intestinal obstruction, which if not relieved results in necrosis of the bowel and in peritonitis, usually within the first week of life. The outstanding contributions to the subject have been made by Dr. William E. Ladd and his associates, and their experience is presented in detail by Ladd and Gross in their recent text.1 Since the first operative recovery in a case of congenital atresia of the ileum, reported by Fockens2in 1911, there have been 11 successful operations for jejunal or ileal atresia, 6 of which were recorded by Ladd and Gross. A resume of case reports is given in the accompanying table. In the experience of Ladd and Gross there were 3 operative recoveries in 6 cases