Mediclinic Performs Emergency Surgery to Save Baby With Birth Defect | ExpatWoman.com
 

Mediclinic Performs Emergency Surgery to Save Baby With Birth Defect

A 38-hour old infant in Abu Dhabi underwent an emergency surgery to repair a birth defect that affected his breathing and feeding

Posted on

7 September 2020

Last updated on 21 February 2024
Mediclinic Performs Emergency Surgery to Save Baby With Birth Defect

The minimally invasive surgery was successfully carried out at Mediclinic Al Noor Hospital

Mediclinic Al Noor Hospital has successfully carried out a minimally invasive surgery to treat a life threatening congenital condition in a male infant born at 39 weeks.

A family recently welcomed their new baby boy at Mediclinic Al Noor Hospital who weighed 2,391 grams at the time of birth. Within three hours from birth, the baby was diagnosed with a rare condition affecting only one in every 4000 births.

Investigations uncovered two conditions that were affecting the infant’s breathing and feeding. Firstly, the upper part of the oesophagus was disconnected from the lower part which joins the stomach.

Therefore, when the baby feeds, the milk cannot reach the stomach. This condition causes milk to go into the lungs which may result in a severe inflammation.

Secondly, an abnormally small tube was detected between the lower part of the oesophagus and the wind pipe which causes air to pass into the oesophagus and acid into the lungs. This condition may lead to choking and pneumonia.

Emergency surgery performed on infant with birth defect at Mediclinic Al Noor

In order to repair this life threatening condition, a multidisciplinary team that consisted of paediatricians, a paediatric surgeon, paediatric neonatologists, a paediatric cardiologist, anaesthetists, radiologists and nurses acted swiftly, mapping out each step of the surgery plan.

“Through three keyhole incisions of less than 0.5cm each and an operative time of 1 hour 45 minutes, we were able to successfully repair the complicated birth defects without having to resort to traditional open surgery," said Dr. Adel Al Junaibi, Consultant Peadiatric Surgeon at Mediclinic.

“This is a rare life-threatening condition that requires a surgical intervention. We are proud and delighted to have been able to put all our expertise into managing such a complicated case through a minimally invasive technique which allows a faster recovery period, less chances for infection, faster healing and a shorter hospital stay," Dr. Al Junaibi continued.

The baby was discharged from the hospital 15 days post-surgery with good health and is now thankfully breathing and feeding normally.

Mediclinic in Abu Dhabi
Sponsored by
Mediclinic Al Noor Hospital
Mediclinic in Abu Dhabi is a group of state-of-the-art hospitals providing an extensive range of in- and outpatient medical, surgical and diagnostic services.

Khalifa Street, next to First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB)