Thoracic
- What
- A hole in the diaphragm, usually on the left, lets bowel and other organs move up into the chest. The lungs don't develop properly (pulmonary hypoplasia), and pulmonary hypertension is common.
- Who
- About 1 in 3,000 babies. Around 6 in 10 are picked up before birth.
- Spot it
- Breathing difficulty at birth, a sunken (scaphoid) abdomen and bowel sounds heard in the chest.
- First steps
- Avoid bag-and-mask breathing, which inflates the bowel in the chest. Intubate and pass a tube into the stomach to decompress it.
- Treatment
- The hernia is repaired once the baby is stable. In severe cases, a balloon can be placed in the baby's trachea (windpipe) before birth (FETO) to help the lungs grow.
Source: Radiopaedia ยท BAPS on FETO
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