[Endoscopic treatment of colorectal polyps in children].

In paediatric patients colorectal polyps are less frequent than in adults. In infancy, more than 70% of colorectal polyps are non-neoplastic (juvenile or amartomatous). Intestinal and pharmacological preparation are different in children with respect to adults. In infants and young children, endoscopic polypectomy is performed under general anaesthesia. From the technical viewpoint, there are no substantial differences between adult and paediatric patients. Moreover, the fact that juvenile polyps are not neoplastic in nature, generally influences the modalities of follow up. In the Division of Endoscopy of the I.N.T., from 1974 to 1987, 33 colorectal polyps were removed in 20 patients (13 M, 7 F). The age range was 2 to 14 years. Only one complication was observed: a post-polypectomy bleed, which was treated endoscopically. Histologically, there were 18 juvenile polyps, 6 hyperplastic polyps, 1 tubular adenoma; 8 polyps (6 in the same patient) were not retrieved.