The treatment for intussusception is primarily surgical. The surgical procedure involved is determined by the condition of the bowel as found at the time of the operation. Ordinarily, this condition depends on the time elapsing between the formation of the intussusception and the operation. Consequently, an early diagnosis becomes an important part of the treatment, since a relatively simple operation with the patient in good condition is usually the result. DIAGNOSIS There are two procedures of decided value in the diagnosis to which I wish to call attention. If an intussusception is suspected but not felt, either because of the abdominal distention or because of the child's crying, the following procedure will often result in a positive diagnosis. The examiner's right index finger is placed in the child's rectum and his left hand on the abdomen. The assistant then holds the child in a sitting posture with its face toward