TITLE:
Seasonal Frequency in Esophageal Atresia/Tracheo-Esophageal Fistula: Is there an Environmental Etiology?
AUTHORS:
Christopher Bode, Adesoji Ademuyiwa, Sylvester Ikhisemojie
KEYWORDS:
Tracheo-Esophageal Fistula, Seasonal Etiology
JOURNAL NAME:
Surgical Science,
Vol.2 No.7,
September
30,
2011
ABSTRACT: Background: Esophageal Atresia and Tracheo-Esophageal Fistula (EA/TEF) occurs sporadically and its eti-ology is poorly understood. We observed six cases of EA/TEF within three weeks of October 2007 at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Nigeria. Aims: To analyze the monthly trends of presentation of EA/TEF at the LUTH from 2002-7, test the hypothesis that the October figures were not due to chance and correlate data with known local disease patterns. Setting: Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria. Patients, Materials, Method: A retrospective analysis of all EA/TEFs managed at the LUTH within stated period. Results: 25 babies with EA/TEF presented over the period. 10 (40%) were seen in the month of Oc-tober, 5 (20%) occurred in May while the rest were spread over the rest of the months. Chi-square analysis confirmed that the EA/TEF cases occurred significantly more frequently in October (P