Hirschsprung's disease Health Article

Definition

Hirschsprung's disease is a blockage of the large intestine due to improper muscle movement in the bowel. It is a congenital condition, which means it is present from birth.

Alternative Names

Congenital megacolon

Causes, incidence, and risk factors

Muscle contractions in the gut help digested materials move through the intestine. This is called peristalsis. Nerves in between the muscle layers trigger the contractions.

In Hirschsprung's disease, the nerves are missing from a part of the bowel. Areas without such nerves cannot push material through. This causes a blockage. Intestinal contents build up behind the blockage, causing the bowel and abdomen to become swollen.

Hirschsprung's disease causes about 25% of all newborn intestinal blockages. It occurs five times more often in males than in females. Hirschsprung's disease is sometimes associated with other inherited or congenital conditions, such as Down syndrome.

Symptoms

Symptoms that may be present in newborns and infants include:

• Difficulty with bowel movements
• Failure to pass meconium shortly after birth
• Failure to pass a first stool within 24 - 48 hours after birth
• Infrequent but explosive stools
• Jaundice
• Poor feeding
• Poor weight gain
• Vomiting
• Watery diarrhea (in the newborn)

Symptoms in older children:

• Constipation that gradually gets worse
• Fecal impaction
• Malnutrition
• Slow growth
• Swollen belly

Signs and tests

Milder cases may not be diagnosed until a later age.

During a physical examination, the doctor may be able to feel loops of bowel in the swollen belly. A rectal examination may reveal a loss of muscle tone in the rectal muscles.

Tests used to help diagnose Hirschsprung's disease may include:

• Abdominal x-ray
• Anal manometry (a balloon is inflated in the rectum to measure pressure in the area)
• Barium enema
• Rectal biopsy

Treatment

Before surgery, a procedure called serial rectal irrigation helps relieve pressure in (decompress) the bowel.

The abnormal section of colon must be removed with surgery. Most commonly, the rectum and abnormal part of the colon are removed. The healthy part of the colon is then pulled down and attached to the anus.

Sometimes this can be done in one operation. However, it is often done in two parts. A colostomy is performed first, and another procedure is performed later in the child's first year of life.