[영문]This study was carried out according to the designed questionaires, as an attempt to evaluate the anatomic location, etiology, preceding disease, complication, mortality, conservative and operative management and its results of external
gastrointestinal fistulas admitted to the Department of Surgery, Severance Hospital, Yonsei University, from January, 1963 to December, 1973.
The results are summarized briefly as follows :
1. There appeared gastroduodenal fistulas in 10 cases, small bowel fistulas in 18 cases, and large bowel fistulas in 31 cases.
2. Among the total 59 cases of gastrointestinal fistulas, the surgical procedures on the G-Ⅰ tract ranks the first as an etiology (39 cases -69%).
3. The important complications of gastrointestinal fistulas were fluid and electrolyte imbalance, malnutrition, panperitonitis, skin maceration.
4. The higher the anatomic level of fistula, the more and severe the complications and the higher the mortality.
5. The mortality of gastro-duodenal fistula was 50%, small bowel 18% and large bowel 30% and the overall mortality of gastrointestinal fistula was 25%.
6. In the upper gastrointestinal fistula, the early operative management resulted in lower mortality than the conservative but in the lower gastrointestinal fistula, the conservative management revealed better result.