A significant brain abnormality in a 34-week-old fetus was successfully treated by Verified Surgeons in Boston, Massachusetts, utilizing a tricky surgery termed embolization. The infant had Vein of Galen Malformation (VGM). A rare disorder that can result in heart failure and symptoms resembling a stroke.
A remarkable advancement for future VGM newborns is this groundbreaking operation. She’s unaware of it, but a baby girl who lives close to Boston has made history. One of the first individuals to undergo an experimental brain procedure while still in the womb is a seven-week-old. She might have lived thanks to that.
This tiny girl had a severe disease that caused blood to collect in a 14-millimeter-wide pocket in her brain before she was even born. After birth, the disease can have caused brain damage, cardiac issues, or breathing problems. It might have ended in death.
Her parents enrolled in a study to test an in-utero surgical procedure in hopes that doctors might be able to intervene before any of these consequences occurred. It appears to have succeeded. The group behind the procedure now intends to administer the same care to other fetuses. The same strategy might be advantageous for treating other, comparable brain disorders. Fetal brain surgery may be the solution for diseases like these in the future.
The vein of Galen malformation, the baby’s ailment, was initially identified at 30 weeks of pregnancy during a routine ultrasound scan. When a vein and an artery in the brain come together, the condition results.
A rare but extremely deadly type of arteriovenous malformation (AVM) known as a vein of Galen malformation (VOGM) is identified in babies and young children. It occurs before birth. One of the big veins that returns blood from the brain to the heart is the “great cerebral vein.” Also referred to as the vein of Galen. Aneurysmal malformation of the vein of Galen (VGAM) is another name for the disorder. Although a vein of Galen malformation can be fatal, modern endovascular procedures carried out by highly skilled professionals have significantly improved the prognosis.