What is esophageal atresia?

What is esophageal atresia?

The esophagus is a tube that carries food and liquids from your mouth to your stomach. Esophageal atresia is a digestive system disorder where a baby’s esophagus develops abnormally before birth.

In babies with esophageal atresia, the esophagus doesn’t connect correctly to the stomach. This malformation can cause choking and breathing problems. It prevents all food from reaching the stomach after swallowing.

Esophageal atresia is a congenital disability (birth defect), which means that it forms during a baby’s development before birth. It often occurs with another problem called tracheoesophageal fistula. A fistula is an unusual connection in your body. With a tracheoesophageal fistula, the esophagus connects to the trachea (windpipe) instead of the stomach.