[Usefulness of dilatation in esophageal stricture in children].

During 8 years, 140 children aged from 23 days old to 12 years old with the diagnosis of esophageal narrowness of different etiologies were studied. They had been treated through periodic dilatations according to their needs; the number of dilatations varied in relation to the clinic entity, age and time passed since the beginning of treatment standing out that the precocious dilatations had a greater success as less of them were required, specially in children with esophageal narrowness post ingestion of caustic and those with post surgical narrowness from correction of esophageal atresia. Among the patients who finished the treatment with dilatations, 81.4% were success fully resolved including 14.2% who needed surgical treatment, that is, resection of stenosis in 7.15%, transposition of colon in 4.28%, and required Nissen operation in 2.85% of patients.