Perioperative outcomes of laparoscopic fundoplication for gastroesophageal reflux disease in children with or without scoliosis

Purpose This study aimed to evaluate the perioperative outcomes of laparoscopic fundoplication (LF) for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in children with scoliosis. Methods Data of consecutive patients with GERD who underwent LF from January 2015 to December 2020 at a single pediatric institution were retrospectively analyzed. Results Eighty-two patients underwent laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication. The median [interquartile range (IQR)] body weight was 9.3 [7; 14] kg. Seventy-five patients were neurologically impaired (91%), and other comorbidities included scoliosis (n = 33), lung disease (n = 39), and cardiac disease (n = 14). The median (IQR) operative time including the creation of the gastrostomy and volume of bleeding were 160 [143; 190] min and 2 [1; 5] mL, respectively. There were no significant differences between patients with and those without scoliosis (p = 0.17 and p = 0.90, respectively). Patients with cardiac disease had a longer operative time (167 [161; 193] vs. 157 [141; 190] min, p = 0.01). There were three post-operative complications in children with neurological impairment; however, there was no clear relationship between the severity of scoliosis and complications. Conclusion Severity of scoliosis did not correlate with perioperative results and post-operative complications. This suggests that the same LF technique can be used regardless of the presence or absence of scoliosis in children.