Texas Children’s Hospital is proud to celebrate the 10th anniversary of a novel treatment: the laparotomy-assisted, two-port fetoscopic closure of a neural tube defect (NTD) to treat spina bifida. This procedure, pioneered by Drs. Michael A. Belfort, Obstetrician and Gynecologist-in-Chief, and William E. Whitehead, pediatric neurosurgeon, offers the potential for improved outcomes for the baby compared to traditional open repair while also being substantially less invasive for the mother.
“This milestone validates that we are a mature program, that we have done a lot of these cases, and that our results are equivalent to, if not better than, anyone else out there doing this,” said Dr. Belfort. “We pride ourselves on offering our patients and families the highest levels of quality, safety and outcome.”
Texas Children’s was the first institution in the world to show that NTDs can be safely and effectively closed fetoscopically using a two-port approach, and it is still one of just a few centers in the country (and world) that offer this type of repair. This procedure has been successfully performed by our multidisciplinary team in over 200 mothers, with an average gestational age at birth of 36-37 weeks.
This procedure was developed by Texas Children’s Fetal Center, in partnership with Texas Children’s Division of Neurosurgery. “The multidisciplinary collaboration with the Fetal Center on this surgical effort is an extraordinary example of the innovative spirit at Texas Children’s Hospital,” said Dr. Whitehead.
Over the past 10 years, Dr. Belfort and his team have trained other fetal surgeons and helped open a number of fetal centers throughout the United States and across the world to develop their spina bifida repair program, enabling a safer approach to fetal surgery and ensuring a healthier, happier future for families across the globe.
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