Cincinnati Children’s, a national leader in prenatal myelomeningocele surgery, recently conducted their 100th prenatal surgical repair. Kelly Song’s daughter was diagnosed with spina bifida at 20 weeks. Read more:
The doctor came in and told Trina that the baby likely had a lower urinary tract obstruction, meaning that he had extra tissue blocking his bladder. This didn’t allow urine to pass through, which meant that amniotic fluid wasn’t being produced to help the baby grow in the womb.
Fetal Health Foundation founder and Fetal Care Chat host, Lonnie Somers welcomes three amazing pioneering women in fetal medicine. Dr. Jenan Miller, Dr. Courtney Stephenson, and Dr. Diana Farmer.
CDH affects 1,600 babies in the U.S. each year. In CDH, a hole in the diaphragm allows abdominal organs to move upwards into the chest during development, crowding the lungs and inhibiting their proper growth. Underdeveloped lungs and blood vessels that supply the lungs can cause high blood pressure in the lungs, asthma, gastrointestinal reflux, feeding disorders and developmental delays in childhood survivors of CDH.
Upon meeting with Colorado Fetal Care Center maternal fetal medicine specialist and fetal surgeon Nick Behrendt, MD, the Oligmuellers learned their case of TTTS was severe. The best solution for TTTS is typically fetoscopic laser ablation. It’s a minimally invasive surgery in which the surgeon inserts a tiny scope into the uterus, through the amniotic sac.