[Rupture of the diaphragm in childhood]

Two patients had acute rupture of the diaphragm from blunt trauma. One was a nine-year-old girl with an associated fractured pelvis and intraperitoneal injuries. She required emergency repair through a laparotomy-thoracotomy. The second patient, a six-year-old boy, underwent repair of a diaphragmatic laceration, diagnosed after a latent interval. Thoracotomy was used.