On the verge of fiction: doctors operated on an unborn child

A woman in the UK underwent so-called "fetal reconstruction" surgery after learning her baby was diagnosed with spina bifida, a birth defect that affects the spine.

Фото: Depositphotos

In December, Bethan Simpson, from Maldon, was told her unborn daughter Eloise had spina bifida. Doctors offered her three options: continuing the pregnancy, terminating the pregnancy, or an option that became available relatively recently - surgery on the fetus, correcting fetal defects before birth, she writes. Fox News.

26-year-old expectant mother chose the third option, becoming the fourth woman in the UK, passed through a similar procedure.

Spina bifida occurs when the spine and spinal cord are not properly formed.

“This falls under the broader category of neural tube defects. The neural tube is an embryonic structure that eventually develops into the baby's brain and spinal cord and the tissues that surround them,” the Mayo Clinic explains.

But when part of the neural tube does not develop or close properly, it causes defects in the spinal cord and spinal bones.

There are various types of this condition, its severity also varies. In particular, in the United States, spina bifida is found, according to estimates by the National Organization for Rare Diseases, in 1500-2000 children from approximately 4 million infants per year.

Doctors spent about four hours to correct the defect of the child Simpson. They opened the womb of a woman to get to the fetus. After that, they sewed up a small gap in the lower part of the spine of the child, and also changed the position of the spine.

“We have achieved success. The damage was minor and she survived the surgery very well,” Simpson, who was 24 weeks pregnant at the time of the surgery, later wrote on Facebook.

The woman added that she feels weakened and is in pain, but the main thing is that everything is fine with the child.

Dominic Thompson, a neurosurgeon who led the operation, said that the procedure "is not a panacea," but noted that the tests showed that "with an early operation, the prospects for the development of the spine are much better."

According to specialists from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, “surgery on the fetus with spina bifida significantly reduces the need for fluid drainage from the brain, improves mobility and increases the likelihood that the child will be able to walk independently.”

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