An international scientific conference
SPINA BIFIDA APERTA – New perspectives
Modern methods of prevention, diagnostics and treatment of birth defects of the fetal central nervous system
took place on 3rd October 2015 in the Park Hotel.
It was organised by the independent public specialist healthcare centre “Zdroje“ hospital within the project: “The development of perinatal care in the Szczecin sub-region – improvement of quality and accessibility of medical services and prevention” co-financed by the 2009-2014 EEA Financial Mechanism and Norwegian Financial Mechanism.
The conference was devoted to modern methods of spina bifida treatment.
The honorary guest of the conference was professor Thomas Kohl – a pioneer of fetoscopic surgery of fetal central nervous system defects – the least invasive way of surgery on babies in the mother’s womb.
An important part of the conference was a meeting of the participants with professor Kohl’s patients: Magda and her daughter Hania, who was diagnosed with spina bifida. After undergoing a fetoscopic surgery now 3-month-old Hania got a significantly higher chance for normal development than the children who have the same defect but are born without this kind of surgery.
The participants of the conference also had an opportunity to listen to the lectures on:
– reasons for occurrence of central nervous system birth defects,
– methods and possibilities of diagnostics of central nervous system birth defects,
– development of the nervous system after a traditional treatment of spinal dysraphic defects,
– potential possibilities of using stem cells in fetal treatment.
The conference finished with a classical guitar recital of a world-famous virtuoso, Krzysztof Meisinger.
Fetoscopic surgeries are carried out by gynaecologists together with neurosurgeons. The doctors form the “Zdroje” hospital are planning to start such surgeries already at the beginning of the next year. The treatment will be financed by the National Health Fund and available for women from all parts of Poland.
