Youngest Recorded Case: Gangrenous Appendix Perforates Inside Chest Diaphragm
11-month-old child successfully treated for an extraordinarily rare retrosternal Morgagni hernia with thoracic appendicular sepsis.
The 11-month-old infant was admitted in toxic shock with high fever and respiratory distress. Emergency cross-sectional imaging revealed a massive defect in the retrosternal diaphragm (Morgagni hernia), through which the cecum and appendix had herniated into the anterior thoracic cavity.
Intrathoracic strangulation had caused the appendix to become necrotic, gangrenous, and perforated directly within the diaphragmatic sac—posing fatal mediastinitis and pleural sepsis.
Dr. Raghul M led an emergent minimally invasive intervention. Working in a tight surgical corridor, the gangrenous appendix was skeletonized, resected, and extracted without contaminating the thoracic cavity.
The diaphragmatic defect was meticulously reconstructed with non-absorbable tension-free sutures. Sepsis was controlled immediately, and the child made a full, uneventful recovery.
Youngest reported surgical success for intrathoracic appendicular perforation in pediatric literature.
Specialized pediatric and neonatal surgical consultations available across Dr. Mehta's Children's Hospital (Chetpet), Maa Kauvery (Kovilambakkam), and Dr. Raghul's Pediatric Surgical Clinic at Hive Fertility Centre (Selaiyur).
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