Cervical meningocele
This newborn baby is having a - a birth defect! This is a defect of the spine and spinal cord which comes under a condition called Spina bifida, a treatable spinal malformation in which the two halves of the vertebral arch fails to fuse, leading to the protrusion or herniation of the meninges, CSF, or spinal cord or altogether through the vertebral defect. Spina bifida with meningocele is when a sac or cyst is forming containing meninges and CSF, but the spinal cord itself isn't affected. The sac may be covered with skin or with the meninges, and does not contain neural tissue. Myelomeningocele is the most severe form, resulting in an open lesion or sac that contains herniated dysplastic spinal cord, nerve roots, meninges, vertebral bodies, and skin. Standard treatment of meningocele or myelomeningocele is a surgical repair, usually done within 24 hours of birth. This surgery aims to prevent further damage of the nervous tissue and to prevent infection. Pediatric neurosurgeons operate to open the sac, drain the excess fluid and the protruded structures are put back inside the spine and covered with meninges. However, although the opening is closed, whatever damage has already been done to the neural tissue is permanent.Photo by @alikassem96
Isn't rachischisis the worst form of neural tube closing defects, since in myelomeningocele the spinal cord is still inside the sac, but in rachischisis it is totally exposed to the exterior environment and it is not compatible with life?
