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spina bifida and ventriculomegaly

I am currently 32 weeks pregnant and we had a routine scan last week.  We were told that our unborn baby has severe ventriculomegaly on both sides. The Anterior ventricle in the brain is 37mm and the Posterior Ventricle is 37mm.  the baby also has lumbar sacral Spina bifida.  Our obstetrician has given us a very poor prognosis. what are the chances of our baby surviving birth and if she survives what would the childs life expectency be?  Also we were considering opting for non-aggressive management since the child's conditions are so serious.
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1007652 tn?1327448828
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Your baby has a serious complication of spina bifida. Severe ventriculomegaly (hydrocepahly) can result is very difficult deliveries because of head size (macrocephaly) and cause injury to the brain over time. In such cases, we generally coordinate and elective cesarean delivery when the baby reaches 35 weeks gestation so that the pediatric neurosurgeons can place a ventriculoperitoneal shunt to relief the pressure in the brain and prevent any additional damage that can occur before you reach term. Babies with spina bifida also have many other challenges, and you should try and deliver at a hospital that has neonatal intensive care, pediatric neurosurgery and a spina bifida care program if possible. These babies can have variable degrees of paralysis in their legs, usually have problems with bowel and bladder control, can develop curvatures of their spine (scoliosis), have problems with breathing (apnea), heart rate (bradycardia) and difficulties coordinating swallowing and breathing (dysphagia) that can lead to feeding problems and recurrent pneumonia or death from aspiration. Children with severe hydrocephaly can also have mild to severe challenges with neurologic development (can have delays in reaching normal developmental milestones) and with intellectual function. While most spina bifida children have IQ's in the normal range, some can have significant developmental and intellectual challenges. A lot will depend on what they find after the baby is born and how it responds to shunting to relieve the pressure that is in the brain. Need to talk to your obstetrician about where to deliver to make sure the best services are available for baby after birth.
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Avatar universal
Thank you for your answer to my question.  Our obstetrician has told us that our babys head will have to be drained ever if delivery is a cesarean.  Is there a high risk that our baby will die during this procedure.
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Avatar universal
A related discussion, ventriculomgaly was started.
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