Life Changing Operation for Baby Jon Theo

This is the case of an 8-month old baby boy who was diagnosed

with Hirschsprung’s Disease shortly after birth.

Jon Theo S. Salem or Baby Theo, as he is fondly called by his family, was born to a 27 year-old G1P1 mother with regular prenatal check ups. He was born full term at 40 weeks and 6 days via ceasarian section and discharged after 2 days with uneventful hospital stay. At 5 days old, he was noted to have abdominal distention, vomiting, with decreased bowel movement. He was brought to the hospital and admitted. On rectal stimulation, he was noted to have an explosive type of flatus and bowel emptying, thus Hirschprung’s Disease was suspected.

Hirschsprung’s Disease is the absence of enteric neurons in the colon and occurs in 1 in 5000 live births and is 4 times more common in males. This simply means that due to the absence of these neurons, his colon and rectum cannot function normally and he is not able to defecate properly like normal babies do, causing abdominal distention, failure to thrive or gain weight due decreased intake.

So, true enough, barium studies of Baby Theo revealed a transition zone in the distal colon suggestive of Hirschsprung’s Disease and he was scheduled to undergo Colostomy Creation and Biopsy to decompress his bowels and create a temporary outlet for his feces. At present, he has good colostomy output and is awaiting his schedule for definitive surgery which is Endorectal Pull-through where the portion of his bowel which has ganglion cells will be brought down to his pelvic area and connected to his anal opening for him to defecate properly and be able to live a normal life.

For Philippine Bank Donations:

Account Name:

Jon Theo Salem By; Franklin John Salem

BDO Account Number: 011210150822

Account Name:

Arianne Rose Salem

BPI Account Number: 2879244598