Surgeons at the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago performed robotic-assisted surgery on a 12-year-old Chicago boy with a rare swallowing disorder called achalasia. The disorder, in which the sphincter muscle between the esophagus and stomach does not properly relax, affects only about 100 children in the United States each year and is often misdiagnosed.
Nathaniel O'Donnell would often complain about pain in his chest when he ate, according his mother, Weslene O'Donnell, a Chicago police officer. His parents and pediatrician attributed the 150-pound boy's complaints to heartburn.
"When he drank, he could feel the temperature of the hot or cold liquids just sitting there in his chest," said his mother.
Nathaniel lost nearly 28 pounds in a short time, and his worried parents became determined to find out what was wrong with their son. Specialists diagnosed Nathaniel with achalasia, a disorder which occurs in only 2,000 people in the United States each year, 95 percent of them adults.
There is no cure for the disorder, but surgery provides the greatest hope for improving symptoms, which include difficulty swallowing liquid and solid food, chest pain and weight loss.
Traditionally, surgery for achalasia has been performed as an "open" procedure. Only recently have minimally invasive techniques like laparoscopy been used.
UIC surgeons were the first in the world to perform robotic myotomy for achalasia in adults and in children. They were also the first to publish the benefits of robotic myotomy over laparoscopic myotomy for this rare disorder.
During a one-hour procedure on Jan. 24, surgeons used the da Vinci Surgical System to cut the sphincter muscle, which will allow Nathaniel to eat and drink food that will empty directly into his stomach.
Nathaniel, an active boy who plays baseball, football and hockey, is expected to be discharged from the hospital tomorrow.