Pediatric Intussusception and Rotavirus Association: An Institutional Experience

A BSTRACT Introduction: Intussusception is one of the most common causes of small bowel obstruction in children. We aimed to analyze the demographic pattern, clinical presentations, and association with rotavirus and management outcomes of pediatric intussusception at our tertiary care institution. Material and Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted more than 1 year and 5 months (17 months). Medical records of children treated for intussusception were recorded in a predesigned Performa. Results: There were 136 patients with 103 (75.74%) males and 33 (24.26%) females. Forty-four (32.35%) were between >3 and ≤6 months age group. Seventy-eight (57.35%) patients presented between 1 and 3 days of illness. A seasonal trend in the distribution of cases was observed, with 70 (51.47%) patients presenting between March and May. The clinical features were classical with abdominal pain/colic/crying spells in all 136 (100%) children. Target sign on abdominal ultrasound was confirmatory in 106 (77.94%). ELISA for rotavirus Ag was performed in 108 (79.41%) of 136 patients. The test was positive in 20 (18.52%) patients. Management consisted of surgical exploration (laparotomy) in 134 (98.53%), and saline enema reduction in 2 (1.47%). Pathological lead point was observed in 13 (9.56%) patients. Preoperative manual reduction of Intussusception was the most common 110 (80.88%) procedure performed. Postoperative major complications were observed in 15 (11.03%) patients. Conclusions: Intussusception was three times more common in males than females. Approximately 60% of patients presented between >3 and ≤9 months of age. The pathological lead point was observed in one-tenth of patients. ELISA for rotavirus Ag was positive in one-fifth of patients. The patients in our geographical area presented late necessitating surgical intervention. Mortality was rare (0.74%).