Background: A significant proportion of children experience bowel dysfunction (including constipation and fecal incontinence) following surgical repair of Hirschsprung disease (HD). Persistent symptoms are thought to relate to underlying colonic and/or anorectal dysmotility. Manometry may be used to investigate the gastrointestinal motility patterns of this population.
Purpose: To (1) evaluate the colonic manometry equipment and protocols used in the assessment of the post-operative HD population and (2) summarize the available evidence regarding colonic motility patterns in children with HD following surgical repair.
Data sources: We performed a systematic review of the Cochrane Library, Embase, MEDLINE, and PubMed databases (January 1, 1980 and March 9, 2020). Data were extracted independently by two authors.
Study selection: This systematic review was performed in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). Studies reporting the post-operative assessment of children with HD using colonic manometry were considered for inclusion.
Results: Five studies satisfied selection criteria, providing a combined total of 496 children. Of these, 184 children with repaired HD underwent colonic manometry. Studies assessed heterogeneous populations, utilized variable manometry equipment and protocols, and reported limited baseline symptom characteristics, thus restricting comparability. All studies used low-resolution colonic manometry.
Conclusions: This systematic review highlighted the paucity of evidence informing the understanding of colonic dysmotility in the post-operative HD cohort. Current literature is limited by variable methodologies, heterogeneous cohorts, and the lack of high-resolution manometry.
Keywords: Hirschsprung disease; colon; gastrointestinal motility; high-resolution colonic manometry; manometry.
© 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.