[Congenital diaphragmatic eventration].

The nomenclature of congenital defects of the diaphragm is not unequivocal. Congenital eventration means the incomplete ingrowth of muscle fibers between the pleural and peritoneal sheet of the diaphragm during the embryonal period. The differential diagnosis of eventration and hernia may be very difficult. The adequate surgical treatment differs. As concomitant congenital defects of the ipsilateral lung often occur, congenital eventration should be operated by transthoracic approach. The prognosis of symptomatic eventration is poor in newborns and good in adults. This is illustrated by two own cases. The one deals with a newborn who had a large congenital eventration of the left diaphragm; the other has been reported detailed elsewhere.