The radiology of intestinal obstruction in children and infants.

Organic intestinal obstruction is often late in producing marked abdominal signs, and diagnosis tends to be delayed. Although nothing can replace a careful record of the history and thorough clinical examination, any furtherdiagnostic aid which is safe, simple, and effective is welcome in doubtful cases. -Flat x-ray investigation of the abdomen in cases of suspected obstruction in adults and children has been used for some years, but not as extensively as it might be. Every clinician is anxious to avoid performing an unnecessary laparotomy, particularly in an ill child. Consequently there is a tendency to keep cases of suspected obstruction under clinical observation until a diagnosis can be made. This may mean that the child becomes acutely obstructed. If there is any investigation that will enable a diagnosis to be made at an earlier stage, that method should be adopted in all cases of doubt. Flat radiographs of the abdomen can give such information. There are, however, pitfalls in this form of investigation, and it is thought that the publication of some cases illustrating the scope and limitations of the method, may be of some value to paediatricians.