CONGENITAL ATRESIA OF THE ESOPHAGUS AND TRACHEOESOPHAGEAL FISTULA.

Forty-eight cases of esophageal atresia and tracheoesophageal fistula observed at the University of California Medical Center, San Francisco, over a 25-year period (1937-1961) were reviewed. Four of the patients were born at the University of California Hospitals, a frequency of 1 in 6,823 births. In 43 of the 44 referred cases, the referring physician established the diagnosis before admission by passing a tube into the blind esophagus or by radiography. Survival rates are comparable to those of other medical centers and emphasize the importance of prompt diagnosis, skillful repair and meticulous preoperative and postoperative care.