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Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staffSigns and symptoms may vary with the severity of the condition. Sometimes they appear right after a baby is born. Other times they may not be apparent until the baby becomes a teenager or adult. In newborns, signs may include:
- Failure to pass stool within the first or second day of life
- Vomiting, including vomiting a green liquid called bile — a digestive fluid produced in the liver
- Constipation or gas, which may make a newborn fussy
- Diarrhea
In older children, signs can include:
- Swollen abdomen
- Lack of weight gain
- Problems absorbing nutrients, leading to weight loss, diarrhea or both and delayed or slowed growth
- Infections in the colon, especially in newborns or very young children, that may include enterocolitis, a serious infection with diarrhea, fever and vomiting and sometimes a dangerous expanding (dilation) of the colon
In older children or adults, signs may include chronic constipation and a low number of red blood cells (anemia) because blood is lost in the stool. Anemia can cause an affected person to look pale and to tire easily.
- What I need to know about Hirschsprung's disease. National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse. http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/hirschsprungs_ez/. Accessed Sept. 12, 2008.
- Hirschsprung's disease. American Academy of Pediatrics. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/children/parents/special/birth/906.htm. Accessed Sept. 12, 2008.
- Wesson, DE. Congenital ananglionic megacolon (Hirschsprung disease). http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Sept. 12, 2008.
- Hirschsprung's disease. American Pediatric Surgical Association. http://www.eapsa.org/parents/resources/hirschsprungs.cfm. Accessed Sept. 12, 2008.
- Hirschsprung's disease. Family Practice Notebook. http://www.fpnotebook.com/GI/Neuro/HrschsprngsDs.htm. Accessed Sept. 12, 2008.
- Endom E. Emergency complications of Hirschsprung disease. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Sept. 12, 2008.
- Picco M [expert opinion]. Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Sept. 17, 2008.
