What are the surgical options?
Insertion of drain - A drain can be inserted into the baby's abdomen to allow any free air or fluid to drain out. This is often performed in the first instance especially if the baby is too unwell for an operation, however an operation may still be necessary at a later point.
Laparotomy - An operation under general anaesthetic. The surgeon will aim to remove the part of bowel that has died and rejoin the two ends together (resection and anastomosis). Sometimes it may be very difficult to operate in the abdomen so a stoma (bowel opening onto the abdominal surface) maybe created. In this case the baby will need a further operation to rejoin the bowel together.
