The child could not eat, because the esophagus was incorrectly formed from the mother’s womb. The boy was saved by the specialists of the Saint Nicholas Children’s Hospital of the First Medical Association of Lviv.
Matvijko Sotnyk was born a month ago in one of the Lviv maternity hospitals. A few hours after he was born, doctors noticed dangerous symptoms in the baby: the boy could not swallow, and therefore could not eat. Foamy saliva flowed from his mouth, and the probe, which the doctors tried to insert into the child for feeding, did not pass into the stomach. The obstetricians suspected the newborn of esophageal atresia. Therefore, he was transported to the St. Nicholas Children’s Hospital. And here the surgeons confirmed the diagnosis.
Children with atresia are rarely born – one in 3,500 babies. In them, the esophagus, which is a continuation of the pharynx and which passes through the entire chest to the abdominal cavity, is divided into several segments even in the mother’s womb. The defect is one of the most complex congenital pathologies that are incompatible with life without the timely help of surgeons. Therefore, the specialists of the Surgery Center immediately began to operate on Matviyk. After all, the child was fading before his eyes.
The operation was performed thoracoscopically – after only three punctures, the baby’s esophagus was sutured. The intervention was complicated by the fact that part of the esophagus was connected to the respiratory tract. And when breathing, air partially entered the stomach. Therefore, the anesthesiologists also faced a serious challenge – to prepare the child for surgery.
Now Matviyko continues treatment. But he already feels much better. Specialists of the Department of Neonatal Pathology are examining the boy. The child begins to eat independently and already breathes much better.