END-RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTAL GASTROSCHISIS CREATED BY ABDOMINAL-WALL VERSUS UMBILICAL-CORD DEFECT

An experimental study was conducted to determine the end-results of tw o different defects on the anterior abdominal wall: an abdominal wall defect (AWD) versus an umbilical cord defect (UCD) using chick embryos . The AWD was created by leaving an intact skin bridge between the def ect and the umbilical cord in group 1; the UCD was created on the umbi lical cord near the junction of the skin in group 2. At the end of inc ubation, the intestines appeared hemorrhagic in the AWD group, but not in the UCD group. During microscopic examination, hemorrhagic areas w ere observed in the bowel wall and mucosal villi in the AWD group but not in the UCD group. The end-result of the defect causing the physiol ogical umbilical hernia resulted in bowel damage resembling the classi c picture of gastroschisis (GS). We conclude that the site of the defe ct in GS is not the abdominal wall itself, but the physiological umbil ical hernia.