Accuracy of the manometric diagnosis of Hirschsprung's disease.

In a 3-yr period, 229 examinations were carried out in infants and children. These were sub-divided into five groups according to age. There were 10 false positive and 8 false negative results, an overall not unreasonable record of 7.8% errors. However, in the neonatal group, there were as many as 26% errors and thus the test in this group was considered to be highly inaccurate. The older the infant or child, the less errors in diagnosis occurred. Possible reasons for errors are pointed out and comparisons are made with other series.