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Gastroschisis: symptoms, causes, to treatment

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What is gastroschisis?

Gastroschisis or gastroschisis is a birth defect that occurs in children while in the mother's womb.

Gastrochisis is a condition when the inside of the stomach such as the intestines is outside the body due to the formation of the abdominal wall that is not perfect.

Most babies with this condition will be born prematurely that is, at 35 weeks of gestation or most of them, are induced at 37 weeks because there is an increased risk.

Quoted from the CDC, gastroschisis is a condition that occurs in early pregnancy when the muscles that make up the baby's stomach do not work properly.

An opening allows the intestines and other organs to leave the body, generally on the right side of the navel.

This exposes the intestines to amniotic fluid which is at risk of irritation, shortening, twisting, or swelling.

This abdominal wall defect occurs when the baby grows in the womb.

After the newborn is born, surgery needs to be done immediately to place the organs in the body and repair the hole in the abdominal (abdominal) wall.

Even though it has been corrected, babies with this condition will likely have problems while breastfeeding, digesting food, and absorbing nutrients.

How common is this condition?

Gastroschisis is a rare congenital condition. This is a disorder that affects both male and female babies.

The estimated gastroschisis ratio is about 1 in 1,500 to 1 in 13,000.

In addition, this condition of baby defects in the abdomen is becoming more common in women who are pregnant young or under the age of 20.

If you are planning a pregnancy, you can learn how to treat gastroschisis by doing a pre-test.

In addition, you can also discuss with your doctor for more information before pregnancy.

What are the signs and symptoms of gastroschisis?

Gastroschisis can be recognized easily, namely by the presence of a hole in the stomach so that it makes the baby's intestine outside the body.

In fact, some areas of the intestine have a darker color due to contact with the amniotic fluid in the uterus. If the intestine is damaged, the child will have difficulty digesting food.

Then, the baby's umbilical cord is usually visible, but pushed sideways due to the condition of the intestines that are outside the stomach.

Quoting from Kids Health, babies born with gastroschisis will generally quickly lose body fluids and heat from the intestines.

This condition automatically causes the baby to experience several other signs and symptoms due to gastroschisis.

Other symptoms that can be seen in babies with gastroschisis are as follows:

  • Losing too much water (dehydration).
  • Low body temperature (hypothermia).

The loss of enough fluids as a result of gastroschisis will cause a baby to experience a variety of symptoms of dehydration.

Some of these symptoms are babies who urinate less often, sleep more, are not very active, and the skin becomes wrinkled.

There may be other signs and symptoms not listed above.

If you have concerns about a certain symptom related to gastroschisis or other conditions, consult your doctor immediately.

When should I see a doctor?

Expectant mothers should arrange regular appointments with doctors to check the health condition of babies with this disorder.

If after the action the baby is allowed to go home, you should immediately contact the doctor if he experiences the following symptoms:

  • Difficulty defecating.
  • Having trouble eating.
  • Fever.
  • The vomit is green or yellow in color.
  • Swelling in the stomach area.
  • Vomiting (as opposed to regular spitting up).
  • Worrying behavior change.

Always consult a doctor in order to get the best treatment regarding the health condition of your baby.

What are the causes of gastroschisis?

As the baby grows and develops in the womb, several of his organs will move through the holes in the body wall.

These organs will then leave the stomach and enter back through the umbilical cord. You don't need to worry because this is normal when the baby is in the womb.

Later, the organs that have re-entered the baby's stomach will be in a closed position.

Unfortunately, this does not apply to babies who have gastroschisis.

Instead of re-entering, the baby's organs remain on the outside of the stomach with the holes in the body walls that remain open.

So far it is not certain what causes gastroschisis to occur. However, gastroschisis could be the cause of other health conditions.

This condition can occur as a result of changes or a combination of hormones or genes (chromosomes) in the baby.

Gastroschisis can also be caused by maternal contact with environmental factors, food or drink consumed, drugs, and others.

What increases a baby's risk of developing gastroschisis?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), several risk factors for gastroschisis are as follows:

Get pregnant too young

Mothers who are pregnant at a young age, such as less than 20 years, have a higher risk of conceiving a baby with gastroschysis than are pregnant at an older age.

Smoking and drinking alcohol while pregnant

Pregnant women who drink alcohol, smoke during pregnancy, or do both of these things are more likely to have babies with this condition.

Given the huge impact gastroschisis has on pregnant women, it is important to always consult with your doctor.

This will help increase your chances of having a healthy pregnancy and baby.

What are the possible complications of this condition?

Launching from the Medline Plus page, a small proportion of babies with gastroschisis or about 10% are likely to have some part of the intestine that does not develop in the uterus.

In this case, the baby's intestines do not work normally even though they have been returned to the body.

Increased pressure from misplaced stomach contents can reduce blood flow to the intestines and kidneys.

This condition also makes it difficult for babies to use their lungs because they can't work properly and cause breathing problems.

Then, another complication due to defects in digestion is intestinal death necrosis. This occurs because intestinal tissue dies due to low blood flow and infection occurs.

There is a possibility, this risk can be reduced when the child drinks breast milk regularly.

How to diagnose gastroschisis?

Gastroschisis is clearly visible when the baby is born. But in fact, this condition can be diagnosed earlier.

During pregnancy, the doctor will do prenatal ultrasound scanning to check for gastroschisis.

It also helps mothers and doctors discuss and plan the right time for delivery.

Therefore, it is important to carry out regular pregnancy and health checks.

Apart from doing an ultrasound during pregnancy, your doctor can also recommend the following tests to make a diagnosis:

1. Counting fetal movements

Fetal movement counting tests can be started at 26 weeks of gestation.

Usually you are asked to count the baby's movements once a day for a maximum of two hours.

Babies must move at least 10 times in a period of two hours.

If your baby is able to move 10 times in just 30 minutes, the test is over.

However, if your little one doesn't show much movement, you can repeat the test again.

It's a good idea to do this test at the same time each day and after eating.

2. Nonstress test and biophysical profile

Nonstress test can be done twice a week from 32 weeks of gestation.

While the examination of the biophysical profile of the fetus can also be carried out at the same gestational age with procedures such as combining nonstress test results and ultrasound.

How to treat gastroschisis?

The information provided is not a substitute for medical advice. ALWAYS consult your doctor.

Here are some treatments that can be done to treat birth defects in the baby's abdomen:

1. Primary repair

Once the baby is born, surgery is needed to treat the protruding intestine.

If the gastroschisis is small, the doctor may perform a one-time operation to return the intestine into the baby's stomach and close the opening.

However, if the gastroschisis is too large, the operation is carried out in several stages.

After returning the intestine to the stomach and closing the opening, the baby needs to be protected from infection with intravenous drips and antibiotics.

Babies will also be given important nutritional intake to maintain their overall health in the gastroschisis treatment process.

2. Gradual improvement

Primary repair is not possible if the intestine outside the baby's body is too large and so swollen that the stomach cannot accommodate it completely.

In this case, several operations may be performed to put the intestines and other organs back into the stomach.

This step can take up to several days or two weeks. With gradual improvement, a plastic bag is placed around the intestine and tied to the stomach.

Each day, the plastic bag tightens and the intestines are gently pushed into the body.

When the intestine is successfully placed in the baby's stomach, the plastic bag is removed and the stomach is closed again.

Some babies may need a breathing apparatus a few days after surgery.

Are there any risks after surgery?

All surgical procedures have a small risk of bleeding during or after surgery.

During surgery, the surgeon will minimize bleeding by sealing the blood vessels.

There is also the possibility of damage to the abdominal structures, but this happens very rarely.

Anesthetists are usually experienced doctors who are used to dealing with complications. It can take a while for the intestines to work properly.

Most babies recover well after surgery. Recovery time in the hospital includes providing nutrition via intravenous (IV).

In some cases, babies will develop a condition called short bowel syndrome (SBS) or short bowel syndrome.

This condition is characterized by diarrhea, very slow weight gain, and a deficiency in essential vitamins and minerals.

If you have this condition, your baby may need a longer intravenous (IV) process.

What precautions can be taken?

Following are precautions that can help reduce the chances of gastroschisis in babies:

  • Perform routine tests to check the baby's health during pregnancy.
  • Avoid getting pregnant at the age of less than 20 years.
  • Avoid consumption of alcohol and tobacco.

If you have questions, consult your doctor for the best solution when experiencing problems during pregnancy.

Gastroschisis: symptoms, causes, to treatment
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