Pioneering Surgery Gets Teenager With Spina Bifida Out of the Wheelchair

An eleven-year-old teenager, Charlotte, was told that she needs to spend the rest of her life on a wheel chair, after several surgeries could not alleviate a severe birth condition called spina bifida and hydrocephalus.

This journey for Charlotte has not been an easy one. More than 500 trips to Southampton and nearly 42 surgical procedures on her leg, back, stomach and head did not achieve the desire result.

Birth Defects - Structural Defects - Neural Tube Defects - Hypospadias
A structural birth defect means that a specific body part is missing or mal-formed during the embryonic development.

An orthopedic expert, Caroline Edwards, would not give up. She was determined to get the young lady on her feet.

The innovative doctor performed a complex operation to lengthen the tight muscles at the hips, knees and feet just before this girl turned 18. This pioneering surgery has enabled her walk again.

Charlotte said: 'When I was 11, I was given an electric wheelchair and told to just get on with it. After I met Caroline, I agreed to let her do the op she suggested but I didn't really know if it would work. Walking again after my operation did not feel strange and it didn't hurt; it just felt completely natural.'

Myelomeningocele-Causes-Risk Factors-Symptoms-Treatment-Complications-Prevention
Low folate levels during pregnancy increase risk of the condition. It is a birth disorder and a severe form of spina bifida where the backbone and spinal canal do not close before birth.

Source-Medindia

Minimally Invasive Surgery Using Robots Lessens the Pain of Reconstructing a Dysfunctional Bladder in Children With Spina Bifida
A surgical robot has been used to perform minimally invasive reconstructive surgery on five children whose bladder was dysfunctional

Genes Linked to Spina Bifida Discovered
A research has shown that a gene regulating glucose metabolism is associated with spina bifida. It is a condition in which the spine of baby fails to close during the first months of pregnancy.