Perioperative outcomes of laparoscopic fundoplication for gastroesophageal reflux disease in children with or without scoliosis

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the perioperative outcomes of laparoscopic fundoplication (LF) for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in children with scoliosis. Methods: Data of consecutive patients with GERD who underwent LF from January 2015 to December 2020 at a single pediatric institution were retrospectively analyzed. Results: Eighty-two patients underwent laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication. The median [interquartile range (IQR)] body weight was 9.3 [7; 14] kg. Seventy-five patients were neurologically impaired (91%), and other comorbidities included scoliosis (n = 33), lung disease (n = 39), and cardiac disease (n = 14). The median (IQR) operative time including the creation of the gastrostomy and volume of bleeding were 160 [143; 190] min and 2 [1; 5] mL, respectively. There were no significant differences between patients with and those without scoliosis (p = 0.17 and p = 0.90, respectively). Patients with cardiac disease had a longer operative time (167 [161; 193] vs. 157 [141; 190] min, p = 0.01). There were three post-operative complications in children with neurological impairment; however, there was no clear relationship between the severity of scoliosis and complications. Conclusion: Severity of scoliosis did not correlate with perioperative results and post-operative complications. This suggests that the same LF technique can be used regardless of the presence or absence of scoliosis in children.