Perforación intestinal espontánea durante el período neonatal

background: spontaneous intestinal perforation (sip) is a rare pathology in the neonatal period. objective: to describe the clinical evolution of 2 newborns with spontaneous gastrointestinal perforations, in order to discuss clinical manifestations, diagnosis and medical-surgical treatment. also, review possible events that may trigger this pathology. case-reports: preterm newborns with sip, both males with birth weight 680 and 1 370 g, showing clinical signs of abdominal distension before 36 hours of life. in both cases, the diagnostic suspicion arose from the abdominal radiography that revealed a pneumoperitoneum. laparotomy was performed, where a single colon perforation was found in the smaller newborn and two ileum perforations in the other child. in both neonates, intestinal resection and end to end anastomosis was done. the newborn with major gestational age and birth weight evolved successfully, whereas the other one died at the 4° day of life due to systemic failure. conclusion: spontaneous gastrointestinal perforation in neonates presents with abdominal distension. diagnosis is suspected from clinical signs, abdominal radiology and confirmed by laparotomy