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Hirschsprung Disease (HD)

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Points to Remember

Hirschsprung (pronounced HURSH-sprung) Disease (HD), is a disease of the * large intestine, which usually occurs in children.

Hirschsprung Disease develops in children before they are born. It is not caused by anything the mother did while pregnant.

Symptoms of Hirschsprung Disease Include:

• Delayed first bowel movement in newborns
• Swollen * abdomen and vomiting
• Constipation since birth
• Slow growth and development
• * Anemia

Children with Hirschsprung Disease may get an infection, called * enterocolitis, which can cause fever and * diarrhea.

Hirschsprung Disease is a serious disease that needs to be treated right away. Hirschsprung Disease is treated with pull-through surgery or, sometimes, * ostomy.

After treatment, most children with Hirschsprung Disease lead normal lives.

Nerve Cells

Nerves are long fibers that carry messages from the body to the brain, and back again, like telephone lines. The messages often tell a body part what to do. Nerve cells are part of nerves. In the intestine, the nerve cells tell muscles how to push the stool along.

For More Information About Hirschsprung Disease:

International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders, Inc. (IFFGD)
P.O. Box 170864
Milwaukee, WI 53217-8076
Phone: 1-888-964-2001 or 414-964-1799
Fax: 414-964-7176
Email: iffgd@iffgd.org
Internet: www.iffgd.org

Pull-thru Network
2312 Savoy Street
Hoover, AL 35226
Phone: 205-978-2930
Email: info@pullthrough.org
Internet: www.pullthrough.org

National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC)
2 Information Way
Bethesda, MD 20892-3570
Phone: 1-800-891-5389
TTY: 1-866-569-1162
Fax: 703-738-4929
Email: nddic@info.niddk.nih.gov
Internet: www.digestive.niddk.nih.gov

Definitions For This Page - In Alphabetical Order

* Abdomen
Pronounced - AB-duh-men
The abdomen is the area between the chest and the hips in the front of the body.

* Anemia
Pronounced - ah-NEE-mee-ah
Anemia is not enough red blood cells in the blood.

* Diarrhea
Pronounced - DY-uh-REE-ah
Diarrhea is loose, watery * stool.

* Enterocolitis
Pronounced - EN-tuh-ro-ko-LY-tis
Enterocolitis is an infection of the small and large intestines.

* Large Intestine
Pronounced - in-TESS-tin
The large intestine is a long tube that makes stool and carries it out of the body.

* Ostomy
Pronounced - OSS-tuh-mee
Ostomy is a surgery to connect part of the intestine to a hole in the abdomen.

* Stool
Stool is solid waste from the body, the material that gets passed in a bowel movement.

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References:
National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC)
October 2004
digestive.niddk.nih.gov

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