[Indications for the surgery of gastroesophageal reflux in children]

A retrospective study based upon 100 consecutive antireflux operations performed in children for gastroesophageal reflux (GER) in the last 9 years enables the authors to elaborate on indications and their timing. The clinical pictures, often combined in this series, were vomiting (85%), respiratory disease (50%), failure to thrive (47%), haemorrhage (25%), brain damage (16%), rumination (6%), oesophageal stenosis (4%), torticollis (3%) and cricopharyngeal dysphagia (1%). Five children had been previously operated upon for oesophageal atresia. Hiatal hernia was found in only 10 instances. Only 9 children were operated upon before the age of 12 months. Overall operative age was high (52.5 months) and that of patients with neurologic disease was even higher (81.3 months) probably as a result of delayed diagnosis. This experience underlines the limitations of medical treatment beyond the age of 12 months, the poor reliability of disappearance of vomiting as an index of cure during the first year and the need for facing operative indications without prejudgements based on traditional ideas that do not take into consideration clinical manifestations of GER disease which are currently well established.