Atresia of the anal opening
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Atresia of the anus is an unperforated anus.
Often there is also a fistula from a blind rectum sac that opens onto the perineum or into the urethra of the boys and into the vagina or vestibule of the vagina or rarely the bladder in girls. The blind anus and skin of the perineum can be a few centimeters apart or separated only by a thin membrane of skin covering the anus.
Atresia of the anus is evident in the routine physical examination of a newborn, since there is no anal opening. If the diagnosis is not established and the child is enterally fed, he soon develops signs of low intestinal obstruction.
You should collect urine and examine it for meconium, which indicates the opening of the fistula in the urinary tract. Survey radiography and fistulography with the position of the child lying on the abdomen in the lateral projection can determine the level of lesion. The cutaneous fistula, as a rule, indicates low atresia. In such cases, radical treatment with perineal access is possible. If there is no fistula on the perineum, there is probably a high lesion.
Radical treatment is usually delayed until the child reaches a certain age, when the structures that need to be restored become larger. Before this time, it is necessary to form a colostomy in order to eliminate obstruction.
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