Points to remember: Hirschsprung Disease

Hirschsprung Disease (HD) is a disease of the large intestine. It develops in children before they are born. It is not caused by anything the mother did while pregnant.

Here are some of the points about hirschsprung disease that you should remember.

• The large intestine is also sometimes called the colon. The word bowel can refer to the large and small intestines. HD usually occurs in children. It causes constipation, which means that bowel movements are difficult. Some children with HD can't have bowel movements at all. The stool creates a blockage in the intestine.

• The symptoms of HD are delayed first bowel movement in newborns, swollen abdomen and vomiting, constipation since birth, anemia and slow growth and development.

• Children with HD may get an infection, called enterocolitis, which can cause fever and diarrhea.

• To find out if a person has HD, the doctor will do barium enema x-ray, manometry and biopsy.

• HD is a serious disease that needs to be treated right away. HD is treated with pull-through surgery or, sometimes, ostomy.

• HD is treated with surgery. The surgery is called a pull-through operation. There are three common ways to do a pull-through, and they are called the Swenson, the Soave, and the Duhamel procedures. Each is done a little differently, but all involve taking out the part of the intestine that doesn't work and connecting the healthy part that's left to the anus.

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