Baby in womb receives heart surgery... Wow this is a first...

[LakeSamish706]

http://www.globaltv.com/globaltv/national/story.html?id=1575454
In a Canadian first, doctors at Toronto's Mount Sinai and SickKids hospitals have successfully performed heart surgery on a baby still in the womb.

A news release Thursday said the doctors expanded the baby's aortic valve using a balloon catheter inserted through the mother's abdomen to prevent the baby's heart from failing before birth.

"This allowed the baby to remain safely in utero for a crucial extra month," the statement said.

The baby, Oceane McKenzie, was born at Mount Sinai Hospital on April 15. Within an hour, she was taken to the cardiac diagnostic and intervention unit at SickKids to undergo another procedure. A third procedure followed a few weeks later.

"Doctors say she is well on the road to recovery and will be going home soon," the statement said.

The hospitals have scheduled a news conference today with Oceane and her parents, Vicki and Ian McKenzie, as well as the head of the fetal cardiac program at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children, Dr. Edgar Jaeggi, and Dr. Greg Ryan, the head of the fetal medicine unit at Mount Sinai Hospital.

[jody]

1. Wonderful news but it highlights an issue for government sponsored health care, resource allocation

and rationing.

What cost-benefit model will congress approve to determine whether such medical procedures will be approved?

[LakeSamish706]

Very true, hell we can't even get any kind of health care in this country. n/t

[Canuckistanian]

18. What "rationing"?

Who's proposing rationing? We don't have rationing in Canada.

[rustydog]

2. Shit, if they can do this, Why not give Dick cheny a heart?

[LakeSamish706]

4. Far to late, he's to far gone.... n/t

[Berry Cool]

6. Yeah, no hope there.

The organ would reject HIM.

[ljm2002]

9. DUZY!!! n/t

[Unsane]

3. but, but I thought socialized health care stifled medical research and development?

[LakeSamish706]

5. That would be only in the US of A.. Don't ya know.. n/t

[Berry Cool]

7. Oh, you are so right about that.

I mean, it's not like they first developed insulin therapy in Toronto or anything. :rofl:

[rockymountaindem]

12. Well, the insulin was before nationalized health insurance

That was back in the 20's. My alma mater, the University of Toronto, had a lovely memorial dedicated to the university doctors who discovered insulin.

[dflprincess]

10. And that Canadians had to come to the states to get

elective or innovative procedures.

[ColbertWatcher]

11. Good point. n/t

[Yo_Mama]

14. Well, just for accuracy's sake

The first fetal heart procedure (pretty much the same as this) was done at Boston Children's in 2001.
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/272323

I thought I remembered that. Their blood vessels are so tiny - I can't see how you could do this. It must take extreme guts for a doctor to try this.

I don't think national health care necessarily stifles research and innovation. It's a matter of what the citizens decide they collectively want to pay for, that's all.

And as for insulin first being used in Toronto, that was in the 1920s, and they sure didn't have socialized healthcare then. I forget the exact date, but I think one of the provinces established the first publicly funded healthcare plan in the 1940s. Healthcare in Canada is still run by the provinces. The federal government provides a share of the funds.

Not that I am implying that Canada doesn't have an excellent medical system. It does. But not everything is covered either. I recently read something saying that about 30% of health expenses aren't covered, and it was from an official source. You have to pay for your own prescriptions, etc. I have a hunch that Canadians are just more realistic about what can be done.

[Captain Hilts]

8. Mount Sinai is a pretty good hospital. nt

[vaberella]

13. Yup..that's my hospital in NYC. n/t

[Captain Hilts]

16. This is Mount Sinai in Toronto. nt

[vaberella]

17. I know. I read the article...I was just referencing Mount Sinai's as great hospitals. n/t

[Captain Hilts]

20. They're all related? I didn't know that. nt

[Vinca]

15. Well, there's no way this is true. Why . . . they don't even have

doctors in Canada, let alone hospitals.:sarcasm:

[Canuckistanian]

19. It's only the first time in Canada

I believe it's been done several times elsewhere. And the first one was done in the US.