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Author Spotlight: Point-of-Care Ultrasound for Gastric Content Assessment and Risk Stratification in Perioperative Care
Published on: September 22, 2023
Gastric volvulus in children--a diagnostic problem: two case reports
Ilaria Trecroci1, Giuliana Morabito2, Claudio Romano3
1Radiology Department, University of Messina, Policlinico G. Martino, Gazzi, Messina, 98100, Italy.
Insights
Gastric volvulus, a rare cause of vomiting in children, requires prompt diagnosis to avoid serious complications. Radiological evaluation is key for identifying this condition and guiding treatment decisions.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Diagnostic Radiology
Background:
- Gastric volvulus presents non-specific symptoms in children, often necessitating radiologic consultation.
- Timely diagnosis is critical to prevent severe complications like ischemia, infarction, and perforation.
Observation:
- Two pediatric cases of gastric volvulus are presented, featuring recurrent vomiting and failure to thrive.
- Barium studies confirmed chronic organoaxial gastric volvulus in both patients.
Findings:
- Gastric volvulus is exceptionally rare in pediatric patients.
- The condition presents complex etiological and management challenges.
Implications:
- A nonoperative approach is recommended when there are no critical warning signs.
- Accurate diagnosis through clinical and radiological criteria is essential for appropriate pediatric care.
Background:
Gastric volvulus is a clinically significant cause of acute or recurrent abdominal pain and chronic vomiting in children. Since related clinical symptoms are nonspecific, clinicians often refer to radiologists for a diagnostic evaluation. Early diagnosis is crucial to prevent life-threatening complications of prolonged volvulus, such as intestinal ischemia, infarction, strangulation, necrosis, and perforation that may require immediate surgical treatment. In this report, we describe clinical and radiological criteria for diagnosis of gastric volvulus in children.
Case Presentation:
We describe two pediatric clinical cases. A 16-month-old female Caucasian child was admitted to our hospital for recurrent postprandial vomiting episodes, which started at 11 months old, associated with failure to thrive. A 9-month-old term-born baby boy was admitted for chronic, recurrent, postprandial vomiting, which started at 7 months of age, with progressive failure to thrive. A barium study allowed definitive diagnosis of chronic organoaxial gastric volvulus.
Conclusions:
Gastric volvulus is an extremely rare disorder in the pediatric population. It can be considered a complex clinical condition with regard to the etiology and the management. A nonoperative approach is advisable in the absence of warning signs.
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