[Prognostic factors in hypertrophic pyloric stenosis].

Introduction: Although the surgical treatment of hypertrophic pyloric stenosis is well established, its management and main complication after surgery, postoperative vomits, are subject to constant revisions. In this study, we sought a prognostic factor that indicates the occurrence of this complication.
Methods: We analyzed different parameters listed in the medical histories of 169 patients treated at a tertiary hospital between 2000 and 2009, both inclusive, ruling out those who suffered some type of complication (n = 17) and those who followed a different pattern of reintroduction of feeding (n = 43).
Results: The decrease in the time interval between surgery and the first shot does not influence the outcome of patients. However, we found a negative correlation between the chlorine level in blood measured by the number of postoperative vomits. The time required to reach a correct tolerance, influenced by the degree of metabolic disorder, does influence both the number of vomits and the time required to achieve a proper tolerance. Other parameters analyzed, such as surgical time and ultrasound measurements of the pyloric olive, do not seem to influence the postoperative course of patients.
Conclusion: Just the degree of metabolic disturbance and blood levels of chlorine seem to influence postoperative outcome, detected by the time required to reach a correct tolerance and the number of postoperative vomits.