Safety and efficacy of Dai-kenchu-to in postoperative infants with gastroschisis

Kohei Otake, Keiichi Uchida, Yuhki Koike, Mikihiro Inoue, Kohei Matsushita, Kiyoshi Hashimoto, Shozo Ide, Yuka Nagano, Masato Kusunoki

Department of Gastrointestinal and Paediatric Surgery, Mie University Graduate School of Medicine, Mie, Japan.
Department of Pediatric Surgery, National Mie Hospital, Mie, Japan.

DOI: 10.4236/ojped.2012.24045                

Abstract

Purpose: Intestinal dysfunction is a major problem after gastroschisis repair, and causes poor oral intake and poor body weight gain in infants with gastroschisis. Dai-kenchu-to (DKT) is often used in the treatment of gastrointestinal dysfunction in Japan. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of DKT on infants with uncomplicated gastroschisis. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study from 1991 to 2009, we assessed 16 infants with uncomplicated gastroschisis. Eight infants received 0.3 g/kg/day of DKT for 12 months (group 1) and 8 infants did not receive DKT (group 2). We analyzed their body weight as an indicator of the effect of DKT. Results: There were no significant differences in the background characteristics. The body weight of group 1 was significantly increased at the ages of 9 months (p = 0.0348) and 12 months (p = 0.0097), compared with group 2. Multivariate analyses revealed that only DKT administration had a significant impact on body weight gain at the ages of 9 months (p = 0.0201) and 12 months (p = 0.0111). No side effects related to DKT were reported. Conclusion: DKT administration might work safely and effectively for improving the body weight gain in infants with uncomplicated gastroschisis.

Keywords

Gastroschisis; Dai-Kenchu-To; Intestinal Dysfunction; Body Weight Gain

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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