First foetus surgery

Press, 29 June 1981, Page 8

First foetus surgery

NZPA D enver. Colorado A foetus still in its mother's womb has undergone surgery that may spare the infant extreme brain damage, the world’s first such prenatal surgery, a newspaper reports. A miniature tube and valve were implanted into the brain of the foetus' with hydrocephalus to provide a drain for accumulating fluid, the "Denver Post" reported. If there are no complications. delivery of the baby is scheduled for July 29' by caesarean section in the thirty-sixth week of the 26-year-oid mother's pregnancy, according to the “Post". The implant surgery’ was performed on April 29 at University Hospital by a seven-member team dominated by surgeons and ultrasound experts from the University of Colorado School of .Medicine, the "Post" said. The infant then was in its twenty-fourth week of development, it said. The surgery’ required puncturing the baby’s skull with a needle after making a small incision through the mother’s abdomen. Unofficial reports indicated the mother was doing well and that successful delivery* of the baby appeared likely, the “Post" said. The paper said team members and official sources at University Hospital had been silent about the accomplishment to avoid building false hopes in parents of children with similar problems. Hydrocephalus can produce atrophy of the brain with mental retardation. It can also be fatal before birth. The "Post” said it had obtained a confidential report, prepared for publication in a medical journal, containing complete details of the case. Ultrasound examination a week before the surgery had verified that the baby already had significant hydrocephalus, according to the report. Ultrasound, which avoids the use of possibly damaging X-rays, uses highfrequency sound waves to produce an image. The surgical team implanted a thin tube to allow fluid to pass from the left ventricle of the baby’s brain to the amniotic fluid that surrounds the foetus, the report said. Previous work to treat infants still in the womb has involved the use of drugs injected into the mother, with the drugs passing through the placenta into the foetus. Surgical intervention was recently used to arrest' de- : velopment of one of a set of twins which was diagnosed as being brain damaged, according to recent reports. Surgeons used a hypodermic needle to remove half the foetus’ blood, stopping its heart, while leaving its healthy twin to develop fully.