Parents of baby boy with rare spinal disorder can smile again

Medeor Hospital operate successfully on child when he was just four months old

The New Year couldn’t have started any better for Rafqat Abbasi, a bus driver at Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority ( RTA), and his wife Sabina Biwi.

Their first child — a son — Abdul Hadi, who is now seven months old, can now look forward to a normal life after being cured of Spina Bifida, thanks to surgeons at Medeor Hospital.

The baby suffered from Myelomeningocele, a rarest form of Spina Bifida, in which the spinal cord was abnormal and could have caused involuntary urine and bowel movements.

Several complications

Explaining the case, Dr Sharath Kumari Maila, neurosurgeon at Medeor Hospital, said that the baby’s spinal cord and nerve endings were protruding out of the body. The parents sought treatment when the child was four months old, but doctors were reluctant to do surgery because of the risk associated with giving anaesthesia to the child.

Dr Maila said: “The baby had a visible lesion in his spine that could have ruptured anytime and cause cerebro spinal fluid from the brain to leak. Another complication was the manner in which the spinal cord was unnaturally tethered at a much lower level to the bone.

Continuous monitoring

“Surgery had to be done very carefully with continuous neurological monitoring to make sure the child had no deficits that could have resulted in loss of control in bowel movement and urine,” Dr Maila said. “The child also had a benign li po ma that was excised alongwith the lesion.”

The baby was brought to Medeor when he was four- andahalf months old, while the surgery was conducted in November. The baby is now seven months old and in a completely stable condition. Dr Maila said he can lead a normal life.

Abbasi and his wife are thrilled as their baby has recovered very well in the last couple of months. “We are overjoyed that our child has a chance at leading a normal life. I am indebted to Dr Maila and his team,” he said. “Wewere losing hope as many hospitals turned us away. Dr Maila conducted the surgery so well that our baby is fine. I am also thankful to RTA who supported me throughout this ordeal.”