What do you cover a myelomeningocele with?

6. Leave dressing in place over sac until the neurosurgeon examines the infant. Thereafter, maintain a saline soaked dressing covering the sac using moist, sterile wet telfa (no betadine).

Which is included in the plan of care for a newborn who has myelomeningocele?

Babies born with a meningocele or a myelomeningocele usually require care in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for evaluation and for surgery to close the defect.

How do you take care of spina bifida?

Treatment after birth may include ongoing surgery, medications and physical and behavioral therapy, depending on the type and severity of the defect, your child’s age and overall health as well as personal preferences. Children with the mildest form of the disease, spina bifida occulta, usually don’t need treatment.

What is the rationale for doing ac section delivery for babies with myelomeningocele?

You may need to have a cesarean section to deliver your baby. This is often done to lower the risk for damage to the spinal cord that may occur during a vaginal delivery. Babies born with a meningocele or a myelomeningocele usually need to stay in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

Can a child with myelomeningocele walk?

Background and Purpose: Infants with myelomeningocele (MMC) have difficulty with, and show delays in, acquiring functional skills, such as walking. This study examined whether infants with MMC will respond to treadmill practice by producing stepping patterns or at least motor activity during the first year after birth.

Should a myelomeningocele be covered?

Myelomeningocele is the most common form of the spina bifida, in which the spinal cord and the tissue around the cord (meninges) protrude from the baby’s back and are contained in a fluid filled sac. There is no skin covering the defect.

Which assessment is a priority for a child with myelomeningocele?

Priority should be given to the evaluation for increased intracranial pressure by evaluating the ventricular shunt. Based on expert opinion, the care of children born with myelomeningocele should be provided within the medical home as well as with multidisciplinary teams of specialists.

Can you live a long life with spina bifida?

Because of improved medical care, especially urologic management, people with spina bifida are living long lives and changing the way medical professionals think about the condition, said Dr. Dicianno.

How do I fix myelomeningocele?

During surgery, the doctor makes an incision across the mother’s abdomen and opens the uterus. The neurosurgeon removes the myelomeningocele sac, if one is present, and repairs the spinal defect in layers before closing the skin to protect the spinal cord from exposure to amniotic fluid.