In 1968 the first contacts were arranged with the publishing house of Urban & Schwarzenberg concerning the establishment of a periodical to be produced in English with the aim of publishing important scientific work in pediatric surgery and related disciplines. I thought especially of certain excellent inaugural disser tations and theses. When Urban & Schwarzenberg promised to start such a series, I recruited Peter Rickham, then in Liverpool and now in Zurich, and Jean Prevot of Nancy as executive editors. We chose the title Progress in Pediatric Surgery - Fortschritte del' Kinderchirurgie -...

At first sight it may appear strange that a volume of Progress in Pediatric Surgery should be devoted to the history of our specialty. One assumes that progress is concerned primarily with recent developments whilst history deals with matters of the past. However, in the past there has also been considerable progress in the development of our understand ing of paediatric surgical problems, otherwise we would not have pro gressed to our present achievements. The editors, therefore, do not apologize for compiling this volume but, on the contrary, feel that the publication of this volume is most...

With improvements in respirator therapy and intensive care, congenital malformations and various acquired pathologic deformities of the trachea or bronchi are more often observed than used to be the case. For a while it seemed that tracheostomy would be unnecessary, but it has since become quite clear that severe disturbance of the trachea would be the outcome owing to primary or secondary pathologic changes that had not been given adequate consideration previous. These changes can lead to urgent life-threatening episodes or definite mutilation for the rest of the child's life. Tracheal...

This volume has been authored by internationally reputed experts from Japan and Europe and reflects the state of the art in the field of pediatric surgery. The first section on constipation and incontinence shows the fast pace of research in Japan on the subject. In particular, pathophysiological studies have led to improved diagnostic techniques and the clinical application of anorectal manometry. The second section discusses a topic that has long been of great interest: motility disturbances of the gut. New insights from improved diagnostic methods, pathophysiology and histology have...

The latest volume in a series for specialists in pediatric surgery.

In conventional partial resection of parenchymatous organs significant bleeding is one of the main problems, especially in neonates and infants. The patients rapidly lose considerable amounts of their small blood volume. Laser light leads to photo thermal effects in tissue and causes coagulation, drying up, carbonization and evaporization, depending on the temperature. The neodymium Y AG laser emits nonvisible light in the near infrared with a wavelength of l. 0611m. This wavelength implies a relatively deep penetration into the tissue. This laser system, properly a coagulation laser,...

Endocrine conditions requiring surgical intervention in the pediatric age group are uncommon. When diagnosed, they are the source of great in terest and, often, considerable debate. This is understandable, since few centers and even fewer individual surgeons can draw on vast experience of this subject. The great divergence of opinion regarding management is also understandable in that pediatric endocrine lesions often differ considerably from their adult counterparts in histology, natural history and response to treatment. Pediatric endocrine lesions are also, as a rule, less frequently...