CONGENITAL CHOANAL ATRESIA: A CASE SERIES

Congenital Choanal Atresia (CA) is the failure in the development in communication between the nasal cavity and the nasopharynx. Its incidence is 1 in 7000 births. The male to female ratio for infants with choanal atresia is 2.2. Approximately two-thirds of cases are unilateral. Structurally there are two main types– a) Osseous-90% b) Membranous. Bilateral CA is an important but rare cause of respiratory distress in newborn. The distress improves with an oral airway. Here 3 paediatric cases of congenital choanal atresia are being discussed. Choanal atresia as a differential diagnosis should always be kept in mind in children presenting with respiratory distress in early neonatal period and in patients presenting with unilateral nasal discharge. Endoscopic surgical technique of choanal atresia repair along with stenting was done in all the 3 cases.