Early childhood outcomes of infants born with gastroschisis

Purpose: To describe neonatal and childhood outcomes of a contemporary cohort of infants with gastroschisis. Methods: Observational, single center, inception cohort of children born with gastroschisis from January 2005 to December 2008. Results: Of 63 infants, 61 survived to hospital discharge and 39 were seen for follow-up. Complications included sepsis (37%), necrotizing enterocolitis (10%), parenteral nutrition related cholestasis (25%), and short bowel syndrome (13%). Of survivors, 5% had visual impairment and 10% had hearing loss. No child tested had mental delay or cerebral palsy. Early gestational age predicted death or disability (OR 0.60, 95% CI 0.38, 0.96; p=0.033). There was a high incidence of prescription medications for presumed gastroesophageal reflux (90%). Some infants continued to require tube feeds (15%). There were improvements in longitudinal growth reflected in increasing z-scores. Conclusions: Although children with gastroschisis are at risk for disability, childhood outcomes are encouraging. (C) 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.