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Bethan Simpson
Bethan Simpson said that "Elouise" literally came out kicking and screaming – and pee everywhere – so she checked all the boxes "
A baby who has undergone a spinal operation while he is still in the womb is at home with his family and "is doing brilliantly".
Bethan Simpson, 26, of Essex, was informed that her daughter Elouise had a spina bifida during her 20-week scan and had been advised to terminate her pregnancy.
However, she opted for the pioneering surgery of "fetal repair", which was only performed on a few British women.
Elouise, two weeks old, "shows no sign" of this condition, said her mother.
The "very hungry" newborn is back at the Burnham-on-Crouch family home, as reported by the Daily Mail.
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Bethan Simpson
Little Elouise is "living proof of what this operation can do," said her mother
Simpson underwent a four-hour operation during which her uterus was opened and her baby's buttocks exposed, allowing surgeons to "sew" a tiny space in Elouise's lower spine.
She and her husband, Kieron, were advised to terminate the pregnancy after the diagnosis of the disease, but said the decision to opt for fetal repair was "obvious".
"I could not justify ending a child with whom I could feel kicking," said the mental health nurse.
The procedure at the University College Hospital in London was deemed successful and Elouise was born on April 1st.
"She literally happened to kick and scream – and pee everywhere – so she ticked all the boxes," Simpson told the BBC.
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Bethan Simpson
Kieron and Bethan Simpson have stated that the decision to opt for fetal repair was an "obvious"
The family had been warned of "waiting for the worst" but their "unbelievable" little girl came home last week.
"She has slightly enlarged ventricles, which she's always had, but her kidneys, her bladder and her hips are normal and she has sensation up to the tips of her toes," Ms. Simpson said.
"She is living proof of what this operation can do, it may not work for everyone, but we have been incredibly lucky."
Elouise takes antibiotics "as a precaution," said her mother, but "her baseline is so good that the doctor hopes the effects of spina bifida will be minimal."
"We hope that she will learn to walk and talk like a normal baby," she added.
Mrs. Simpson's surgery was funded by a charitable trust created by the hospital that operated her and by Great Ormond Street. But the NHS England has confirmed that spinal surgery of unborn babies with spina bifida would soon be available.
It is thought that Mrs. Simpson is the fourth patient to undergo the operation in the United Kingdom, the procedure being practiced mainly in Belgium and the United States.
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Spina bifida occurs in about four out of 10,000 pregnancies
Spina bifida and fetal repair surgery
Spina bifida literally means "fracture of the spine" and occurs when the spine and spinal cord are not properly formed during pregnancy (before the sixth week), leaving the nerves exposed.
It occurs in about four out of every 10,000 pregnancies.
The cause is unknown, but mothers are encouraged to take folic acid supplements to reduce the risk of developing spina bifida in early pregnancy.
Babies born with this condition can become paralyzed, have bladder and bowel problems, and affect brain development.
It is estimated that about 80% of mothers choose an interruption of treatment when spina bifida is diagnosed, although its severity varies.
The delicate surgical procedure is to open the uterus and fill the gap in the back of the baby while it is still in the womb.
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