Hyderabad: 5-day-old undergoes surgery for spinal birth defect at Yashoda Hospitals

Hyderabad: Surgeons at Yashoda Hospitals, Secunderabad, have successfully operated on a five-day-old infant who was born with a spinal birth defect. The infant girl, whose parents hail from Karimnagar, was brought to the hospital with a swelling in the right gluteal region. Imaging tests including MRI revealed the spinal defect known as lipomyelomeningocele, a fatty mass growth under the skin on the child’s back.

The infant was evaluated by anaesthesia team and taken for repair of the spinal defect along with excision of the attached soft tissue after due process. During the surgery, nerve monitoring was used to make sure the nerves of the defect were undamaged during handling.

Post-surgery, the infant has no motor deficit in lower limbs as she is able to move both the lower limbs normally and was discharged with catheter as the surgical wound remained healthy. On follow-up, the infant was evaluated at a local hospital and the catheter was removed. “The child was able to pass urine well now,” senior neuro and spine surgeon, Yashoda Hospitals, Secunderabad, Dr. KS Kiran said.