woman with spina bifida and pregnancy

OBJECTIVE: To determine the medium-term maternal impact of open fetal spina bifida repair. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: University Hospitals Leuven, Belgium. POPULATION: Mothers who had open maternal-fetal spina bifida repair between March 2012 and December 2021. METHODS: A patient-reported survey on subsequent fertility, pregnancy, and gynaecological and psychological outcomes. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Complications during subsequent pregnancies, and gynaecological and psychological problems...

Neural tube defects (NTDs) occur during embryogenesis, specifically during the fifth or sixth week of gestation, and are described as aberrant neural tube closing. The defect may alter the normal development of the vertebrae, spinal cord, cranium, or brain. The present study describes the case of a 41-year-old pregnant woman with fetal sacral meningocele, no associated pathologies, no family history of neural tube defects, a pregnancy under folate supplementation with the aim of highlighting the importance of ultrasound in diagnosing neural tube defects...

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to share a single center's experience of prenatal neurosurgical counseling and explore pregnant women's experiences with counseling. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This retrospective study analyzed data for 81 women who received prenatal counseling in a single institution (same senior pediatric neurosurgeon) over a 6-year period. Additionally, a retrospective questionnaire study was conducted with 33 women who chose to continue their pregnancy, to assess the strengths and weaknesses of counseling and analyze the reasons for their decision...

INTRODUCTION: Bariatric surgery has been increasingly popular during the last years because of its proven efficacy on obesity and related complications. However, nutrient deficiency is common after surgery, in particular after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) or omega gastric bypass (OGB), due to iatrogenic malabsorption. All vitamins and minerals could be involved, including vitamin B9 which plays an important role in the prevention of neural tube defects during pregnancy. We present a case of a spina bifida in the fetus of a pregnant woman following OGB...

BACKGROUND: Periconception interactions between maternal conditions and environmental and genetic factors are involved in the pathogenesis and prevention of neural tube defects (NTD), such as spina bifida. These factors have in common that they can impair the oxidative pathway, resulting in excessive (chronic) oxidative stress and inflammation. METHODS: Review of the literature concerning underlying mechanisms and biomarkers of aging particularly during reproduction...

BACKGROUND: More than 1 in 10 women of reproductive age identify as having some type of disability. Most of these women are able to become pregnant and have similar desires for motherhood as women without disability. Women with disability, however, face greater stigma and stereotyping, additional risk factors, and may be less likely to receive adequate reproductive health care compared with their peers without disability. More and more individuals, including those with disability, are utilizing the internet to seek information and peer support...

Objectives: To characterize the reproductive history and pregnancy outcomes in women of reproductive age as part of an ongoing periconceptional surveillance program in Southern India. Methods: Participants were women of reproductive age (15-40 y) who were not pregnant or lactating and resided in households within the 50 km2 catchment area of our community-based research site in Southern India (n = 813). After obtaining informed consent/assent, reproductive and obstetric histories were captured by a trained OB/GYN nurse via an electronic interviewer-administered questionnaire with the study participants...

INTRODUCTION: Complete non-mosaic trisomy 22 is a fatal chromosomal disorder that only few fetuses can survive over 12 weeks as reported. Prenatal sonographic findings combined with postnatal or postmortem discoveries showed characteristic multi-systematic anomalies. PATIENT CONCERNS: The unborn baby of a 35-year-old pregnant woman was found to have several anomalies during a prenatal sonographic scan, including intrauterine growth retardation, ventricular septal defect, flat facial profile, and unclear bilateral kidney structures...

OBJECTIVE: To determine rates and types of peripartum morbidity among delivering women with spina bifida (SB) compared to those without SB. The rates of pregnancy and delivery among women with SB have been significantly increasing. Current knowledge of peripartum outcomes for these women is limited. METHODS: Using 2004-2013 National Inpatient Sample data, we identified all hospitalizations for delivery, distinguishing between women with and without SB. Using a code-based algorithm, we determined whether a complication occurred during the hospitalization...

Termination of pregnancy for fetal anomaly is legal in the UK with no upper limit, if two doctors, in good faith, agree "there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped". This is Clause E of the Human Fertlisation and Embryology Act. The most commonly sighted Clause is C, which states "the pregnancy has not exceeded its twenty-fourth week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman"...

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of sonographic assessment of the embryonic/fetal neural tube in nonviable pregnancies and to determine the defect incidence. METHODS: Prospective analysis of transvaginally acquired 3-dimensional (3D) multiplanar and 3D surface-rendered volume sets of 340 cases of missed abortion between March 2010 and September 2015 was performed. Data regarding karyotype and postmortem examination as well as demographic features and the outcomes of subsequent pregnancies were evaluated...

Myelomeningocele, a severe form of spina bifida, occurs in approximately 1 in 3,000 live births in the United States. The extent of disability is generally related to the level of the myelomeningocele defect, with a higher upper level of lesion generally corresponding to greater deficits. Open maternal-fetal surgery for myelomeningocele repair is a major procedure for the woman and her affected fetus. Although there is demonstrated potential for fetal and pediatric benefit, there are significant maternal implications and complications that may occur acutely, postoperatively, for the duration of the pregnancy, and in subsequent pregnancies...

Myelomeningocele, a severe form of spina bifida, occurs in approximately 1 in 3,000 live births in the United States. The extent of disability is generally related to the level of the myelomeningocele defect, with a higher upper level of lesion generally corresponding to greater deficits. Open maternal-fetal surgery for myelomeningocele repair is a major procedure for the woman and her affected fetus. Although there is demonstrated potential for fetal and pediatric benefit, there are significant maternal implications and complications that may occur acutely, postoperatively, for the duration of the pregnancy, and in subsequent pregnancies...

Some pregnancies today involve infertile individuals or couples who contract with a fertile woman to carry a pregnancy for them. The woman who carries the pregnancy is referred to as a "gestational carrier." The use of such arrangements is increasing. Most of the time, these arrangements play out as planned; sometimes, however, problems arise. This article discusses a case in which a fetal diagnosis of spina bifida led the infertile couple to request that the gestational carrier terminate the pregnancy, and the gestational carrier did not wish to do so...

OBJECTIVE: Here, we report a case of parapagus diprosopus twins with spina bifida diagnosed in the first trimester of pregnancy using two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) ultrasound. CASE REPORT: A 28-year-old Taiwanese woman, gravid 1, para 0, visited our hospital due to an abnormal fetal head shape discovered by 2D ultrasound at 11-weeks gestation. Parapagus diprosopus twins with spina bifida were diagnosed after ultrasound examination. The characteristics of parapagus diprosopus twins are more illustrative in 3D ultrasound than in 2D ultrasound...

OBJECTIVE: To develop consensus recommendations for index congenital urological cases seen in adulthood and to generate discussion among providers who treat these patients across the lifespan. This manuscript reviews the proceedings and recommendations of the 2015 American Urological Association Working Group on Urological Congenitalism. METHODS: Index cases were selected to highlight controversies in the management of different congenital patients in adulthood...

We analyzed the role of maternal C677T mutation in methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene on spina bifida development in newborns. A total of 115 mothers who had given birth to a spina bifida child (SB mothers) gave 10 mL of blood together with written informed consent. The genotype distribution of C677T mutation was assessed and compared with that of the 4517 control individuals. The prevalence of the homozygous genotype (TT) among SB mothers was not significantly different from that among the controls (odds ratio [OR] = 0...

Suppose a physician advises a woman to delay her planned pregnancy for a few months in order to significantly reduce the likelihood that her baby will suffer with Spina Bifida. If the woman chooses to ignore this advice and conceives soon after, I believe most people would consider it a matter of common sense that the child thus born is a victim of this woman's negligence, even if it is fortunate enough to not be burdened with Spina Bifida. This common sense judgement appeared to have been done in by the fact that the timing of conception can be identity-influencing, and so the child that is born only exists because of its mother's decision to ignore her physician's advice...

Approximately 1% of all pregnancies are in woman with epilepsy. Although, the majority of children born to women with epilepsy are normal, they are at increased risk for malformations. Notably, the teratogenicity of antiepileptic drugs is a well-defined subject. The incidence of major malformations in offspring of mothers with epilepsy who were treated with AEDs is higher than women with untreated epilepsy and in the general population. These malformations include spina bifida, cleft palate, limb reduction defects, cardiac abnormalities, hypospadias, and gastrointestinal atresia...

Proper metabolism of folates has a crucial role for body homeostasis. Folate metabolism regulates changing of amino acids (homocysteine and methionine), purine and pyrimidine synthesis and DNA methylation. These whole biochemical processes have significant influence on hematopoietic, cardiovascular and nervous system functions. The disturbances of folate cycle could result in chronic hypertension, coronary artery disease, higher risk of heart infarction, could promote cancers development, and psychic and neurodegenerative diseases...