These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.


Pubmed for Handhelds

PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS

Search MEDLINE/PubMed

  • Title: The surgical implications of chronic granulomatous disease.
    Author: Eckert JW, Abramson SL, Starke J, Brandt ML.
    Journal: Am J Surg; 1995 Mar; 169(3):320-3. PubMed ID: 7879835.
    Abstract:
    BACKGROUND: Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) of childhood is a rare congenital abnormality of the phagocyte NADPH oxidase system. Affected neutrophils and macrophages have an ineffective respiratory burst and cannot destroy certain phagocytized bacteria and fungi. CGD patients usually present with recurrent pyogenic and fungal infections. Catalase-positive bacteria are frequently involved, since they metabolize the hydrogen peroxide they produce, making it unavailable for augmentation of microbicidal activity in CGD neutrophils. Afflicted patients also have a tendency to form granulomas, which can lead to obstruction of the gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts. METHODS: Charts of 10 patients with CGD were reviewed for age at diagnosis, surgical procedures, complications of these procedures, and medical treatment. RESULTS: Eight of the 10 children were male. The average age at first presentation was 18 months (range 2 days to 9.8 years). Each child developed a mean of 9.9 infections and an average of 1.4 infections per year. All required surgical procedures, with an average of 2.9 procedures each. Five children had operative procedures for infections that preceded the diagnosis of CGD. The procedures performed most frequently were incision and drainage of soft-tissue abcesses (7) or perirectal abscess (3), thoracentesis (3), and bronchoscopy (3). Three children had poor wound healing following surgery. Two developed partial gastric outlet obstruction which resolved with antibiotic therapy. One developed granulomatous cystitis with obstruction which responded to antibiotics. CONCLUSIONS: Since patients with undiagnosed CGD may present with surgical problems, surgeons need to be familiar with this condition. The diagnosis should be suspected in children who have recurrent or unusual infections or unexplained problems with wound healing.
    [Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]