2021, Volume 14, Issue 5, pp 716 – 721

Early prenatal diagnosis of an atypical phenotype of sacral spina bifida

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Authors and Affiliations

Corresponding Author: Consuela-Mădălina Gheorghe, Department of Marketing and Medical Technology, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy Bucharest, 8 Eroii Sanitari Bld., 050474, District 5, Bucharest, Romania. Phone: +40729935485; E-mail: consuela.gheorghe@umfcd.ro

Abstract

Neural tube defects (NTDs) occur during embryogenesis, specifically during the fifth or sixth week of gestation, and are described as aberrant neural tube closing. The defect may alter the normal development of the vertebrae, spinal cord, cranium, or brain. The present study describes the case of a 41-year-old pregnant woman with fetal sacral meningocele, no associated pathologies, no family history of neural tube defects, a pregnancy under folate supplementation with the aim of highlighting the importance of ultrasound in diagnosing neural tube defects. The ultrasonographic diagnosis was not clear from the beginning. In our case, the differential diagnosis of meningocele was made with the cystic compound of a sacrococcygeal teratoma, which represents one of the most common congenital tumors in newborns. The particularity of this case was that a neural tube defect occurred despite the prophylactic administration of folic acid during pregnancy, which represents a well-documented protection against neural tube defects in fetuses.

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About this article

PMC ID: 8742886
PubMed ID: 35027976
DOI: 10.25122/jml-2021-0292

Article Publishing Date (print): Sep-Oct 2021
Available Online: 

Journal information

ISSN Printing: 1844-122X
ISSN Online: 1844-3117
Journal Title: Journal of Medicine and Life

Copyright License: Open Access

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.


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