Although the standard works on embryology, anatomy, pathology and pediatrics seldom refer to the interesting condition of congenital obstruction of the small intestine, isolated case reports are not infrequent. In the large necropsy service of Bellevue Hospital during the past fourteen years, congenital obstruction of the intestine was encountered twice only.
Louise Cordes1 collected fifty-six cases from the literature up to 1901, and reported a case of her own. Ballantyne,2 in discussing the condition, says: "Antenatal narrowing or occlusion of the intestine is not very rare, but being an internal malformation, doubtless often escapes discovery." He reported a case with which he was acquainted and mentions the cases published by Durante3 (two cases), Jackson,4 A. Katz,5 and Kirmisson,6 not included by Cordes. Kirmisson's patient had been operated on for anal atresia soon after birth "with apparent success;" however, the infant died and necropsy showed