Surgical Outcomes in Esophageal Atresia and Tracheoesophageal Fistula: A Comparison between Primary and Delayed Repair

The purpose of this study was to investigate outcomes of surgical repair of esophageal atresia (EA) or tracheoesophageal fistula (TEF) in newborns, with respect to incidence of death and other complications in early or late operations. Charts of all 80 infants with EA/TEF, operated in Alzahra hospital (A tertiary hospital of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences) from 2002 to 2004 were reviewed. Patients were designed in two groups as, primary and delayed repair groups. Patients demographics, frequency of associated anomalies, and details of management and outcomes were studied. There were 48 male and 32 female patients with a frequency of 28(35%) preterm infant and mean birth weight of 2473±595 g. Overall survival rate was 71.2%. Mortality rate in delayed repair group was significantly higher than the other one (22.5% vs. 6.3%) but with matching, according to full term/preterm proportion, the significant differences were failed. Female sex and being preterm were the most powerful predictors of death (nearly odds ratio=7 for both). in this study mortality and complications rates are higher in delayed repair than early one, although our data proposed that in absence of sever life threatening anomalies the most important factor for death is gestational age and female sex, and primary repair is opposed to it. Although mortality rate and complications are equal in two strategies, with matching cases for being preterm, but primary repair stays the better choice due to economic considerations.