A mother from the UK underwent groundbreaking surgery on her unborn baby who had a rare condition where his intestines were developing outside of his body in the womb. Maisie Savage, a 29-year-old teacher from London, was 26 weeks pregnant when doctors in the United States performed the surgery on her baby, Theo, who is now five months old and healthy. Theo had a condition called gastroschisis, which caused his intestines to grow outside of his body, leading to an abnormal formation of his belly button.
The remarkable operation, carried out before Theo’s birth, involved moving his intestines back into his abdomen. Theo is only the third baby in the world to undergo this pioneering procedure, with doctors in the UK identifying the complexity of his condition during a routine 20-week scan.
After being referred to Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston by Great Ormond Street Hospital in the UK, Maisie had to travel to Belgium for a preliminary procedure involving injecting Botox into her baby’s abdominal wall. Following this, Maisie and Theo’s father, Josh French, traveled to Texas for the groundbreaking surgery in November.
The surgery, led by Dr. Michael Belfort, involved a minimally invasive procedure where part of the mother’s womb was exposed and moved slightly from the abdomen. The womb was filled with CO2 gas to create more space, allowing the baby’s organs to be repositioned into the abdomen before stitching up.
The successful surgery resulted in the birth of Theo in February, who is now thriving like a normal baby. Dr. Belfort expressed satisfaction with the outcome, highlighting the absence of complications during and after the fetal surgery. He indicated the possibility of making this innovative surgery available in the UK pending the success of the trials.
Professor Paolo de Coppi of Great Ormond Street Hospital echoed this sentiment, expressing hope for wider implementation of the procedure in the near future.
