An analysis of the morbidity and mortality of short-bowel syndrome in the pediatric age group.

Twenty-two children with short-bowel syndrome (SBS) were treated at the C. S. Mott Children's Hospital in the University of Michigan Medical Center between June 1983 and May 1993. Definition of SBS was loss of 70% or more of the total small bowel. Seventeen of these children are currently alive, a 77% survival rate. Patients were followed for a mean of 1,148 days. The mean age of SBS development was 71 days of life. The only predictive indicator of patient survival was direct bilirubin levels. Sixty-seven percent of the children died if they had a direct bilirubin of > 4 mg/dl > or = 6 months duration.