[Traumatic lesions of the thoracic and abdominal organs in childhood].

This is a retrospective analysis of 651 children, aged 0 to 14 years, presenting chest and abdominal injuries, treated over a 6-year period in the section of pediatric surgery of the Emergency Medicine Institute "Pirogov". The results of studies on the etiopathogenesis of chest and abdominal trauma, patterns of associated lesions and quality of prehospital aid are discussed. Experience with the application of updated noninvasive and invasive methods of diagnosis, as well as the scope of surgical approach to the variety of lesions by resorting to organ sparing and organ salvaging operative procedures are analyzed.

[Traumatic rupture of the diaphragm in combined trauma in childhood].

Blunt traumatic injuries to the diaphragm are comparatively rare and are always associated with other severe injuries to the chest, abdomen, head and extremities. In childhood they are exceptionally rare. No such complication in blunt abdominal and thoracic trauma has been observed at the Clinic of Pediatric Surgery of the "Pirogov" Emergency Hospital in Sofia for the last ten years.

[Pleuropulmonary surgical complications in children with abdominal surgical diseases].

In a series of 4350 children with abdominal surgical diseases operated at the Department of Pediatric Surgery in Sofia for a period of 3 years (1987-1989) the authors have observed 4 cases of pleuropulmonary complications (0.09 per cent). In two of these children the primary abdominal operation was for liver echinococcus, in 1--rupture of the liver and subphrenic abscess and in 1--perforative appendicitis and purulent peritonitis.