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עמוד בית
Tue, 10.12.24

Original Articles

IMAJ | volume

Journal 8, August 2000
pages: 592–594

The Importance of Early Surgery in Children with Ulcerative Colitis

    Summary

    Background: Ulcerative colitis begins in early childhood in 4% of cases. Medical therapy is non-specific, and as many as 70% of children will ultimately require surgery. The dynamic growth, physical and psychological changes that characterize childhood are severely compromised by the complications of ulcerative colitis and its therapy.

    Objective: To review the outcome of children undergoing early surgery for ulcerative colitis at a tertiary medical center in Israel.

    Methods: A retrospective review was conducted of all children operated on following failure of medical therapy for ulcerative colitis during a 5 year period.

    Results: Eleven children underwent a J-pouch procedure with ileo-anal anastomosis in one to three stages. Postoperative complications included recurrent pouchitis in 5 patients, intestinal obstruction in 3, fistula with incontinence in one, stricture in one, and wound infection in 4. Follow-up revealed that most of the patients have three to four soft bowel movements daily. All currently enjoy normal physical activities and a rich social life.

    Conclusions: The quality of life in children with ulcerative colitis was markedly improved following J-pouch surgery. This procedure was not associated with major complications. We recommend early surgery as an alternative to aggressive medical therapy in children with this disease.

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