Fissurectomy as a treatment for anal fissures in children.

INTRODUCTION: Anal fissures, characterised by painful defecation and rectal bleeding, are common in both children and infants. A significant proportion are resistant to simple laxative therapy, and no simple surgical treatment has been described which does not risk compromising sphincteric function. This study reports the initial experience of fissurectomy as a treatment of this condition. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Over a 36 month period, 37 children with an anal fissure were treated by fissurectomy. There were 14 boys and 23 girls, with an age range of 17 weeks to 12 years. Fissurectomy was performed under general anaesthetic, with additional caudal anaesthesia. Stay sutures were used to avoid the need for an anal retractor, thereby preventing stretching of the internal anal sphincter. Of the 37 operations, 36 (97%) were performed as day cases and all children were discharged on laxative therapy. RESULTS: At review, 6 weeks postoperatively, 30 (81%) were asymptomatic. Six (16%) patients were symptomatic; however, 4 of these had failed to comply with the postoperative laxative regimen. One patient failed follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Fissurectomy is a successful treatment for anal fissures, when combined with postoperative laxative therapy. As dilatation of the internal anal sphincter is not involved, the risk of iatrogenic faecal incontinence is obviated.

Gluteal fold flaps for perineal reconstruction.

Defects of the perineum are created during ablative procedures for gynaecological, urological and colorectal malignancies. The gluteal fold flap is a reliable means of reconstructing these defects. We retrospectively reviewed case notes of gluteal fold flaps performed for perineal reconstruction over four years (2007-2010) in our institution. 77 perineal defects were reconstructed using unilateral or bilateral gluteal fold flaps (127 flaps in total). 50% of all patients are discharged before 11 days, and 90% were discharged within one month. Mean time to discharge was 13.2 days. 70% of all patients were completely healed at 2 months, and 85% completely healed at three months. Pre-operative radiotherapy was found to have a prolonging effect on the time to discharge (P<0.05) but did not reach statistical significance when considering the eventual time to healing. The number of co-morbidities that each patient had at the time of surgery had a prolonging effect on both time to discharge and time to healing (P<0.03). The type of resected areas that required reconstruction did not have a statistically significant effect on the time to discharge, but defects where the anus had been resected did eventually take longer to heal than those were the anus was not resected (P<0.01). 124 flaps were successful (97.6%) with total or partial flap loss occurring in three. Complications were seen in 34 of the 77 patients (44%), with simple wound breakdown resulting in delayed healing seen most frequently (30%). The gluteal fold fasciocutaneous flap is a versatile option for reconstructing a wide range of pelvic and perineal defects. Patients with multiple co-morbidities, cases with radiotherapy and instances where the anus has been resected are more likely to experience longer healing times. We present our algorithm for management for perineal defects after tumour resection.

Two-stage hypospadias repair: audit in a district general hospital.

The number of techniques for hypospadias repair is testament to the challenges associated with this condition. In 1994, the senior author undertook an audit of his repairs using the van der Meulen [Plast. Reconstr. Surg. 59 (1977) 20615] technique and determined that the revision rate of 11% was unsatisfactory and the cosmetic result sub-optimal. He, therefore, retrained and began in 1995, using the two-stage technique popularised by Bracka [Br. J. Plast. Surg. 48 (1995) 345]. We undertook an audit of all corrections performed in the period from September 1995 to March 2002. The computer database in the main theatre suite was used to identify all patients on whom such a repair had been undertaken and those notes retrieved. Data was collected on a number of variables including age at operations, complications such as urinary tract infection and fistulae, and total number of corrective operations. One hundred and nineteen patients were identified, of which seven had no records available. Of the remaining 112, 81 were primary repairs, in whom the complication rate was 2.5% for stage I (graft loss) and 9.8% for stage II (fistula rate 7.4%, stenosis 1.2%, baggy urethra requiring reconstruction 1.2%). The remaining 31 patients were those with unsatisfactory single-stage repairs and in this group, graft loss was seen in three cases (10%). The fistula rate was 4/31 (12.9%) and the stenosis rate 2/31 (6.5%). These results compare favourably with a number of published series from surgeons who have super-specialised in this field. We conclude that the two-stage repair is a useful and reliable technique in the hands of a Plastic Surgeon who has a broader interest.