Pioneering Fetal Medicine Center Gathers Thousands for 26th Annual Family Reunion
The annual reunion brings together a unique community of families who have shared similar struggles. Nearly all the children in attendance had been prenatally diagnosed with a birth defect, such as spina bifida, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, or twin-twin transfusion syndrome, that had potentially devastating outcomes.
Liam: Fetal Surgery for Myelomeningocele (MMC) Spina Bifida Repair
“The doctor came in and handed me a box of tissues,” Katie recalls. “She was saying something about an abnormal pregnancy, shunts, abnormalities of the left leg, club foot. I was in complete shock at that point, and I couldn’t really make out what she was saying because it felt like time was suspended.”
In a span of two hours, their lives had been turned upside down.
Cincinnati Children’s Reaches New Milestone for Improving Outcomes in Babies with Spina Bifida
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:
One step closer to treating spina bifida with stem cells
With the CIRM funding, the UC Davis team will be able to launch their one-of-a-kind treatment in the coming months. It will be delivered while the baby is still in the mother’s womb (in utero). The complex procedure, with its unique use of a stem cell “patch,” could improve outcomes for children who are born with the severe form of spina bifida known as myelomeningocele.
2020 Connexions Magazine Available Online
award-winning 2020 Connexions magazine, full of updates around fetal research, how our maternal fetal partners are improving outcomes for patient families with conditions such as spina bifida, IUGR and tetralogy of fallot, as well as learning more about PCOS and pregnancy, or the importance around birth photography.