A team of doctors at the Cardiothoracic Sciences Center, in All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), Delhi, India, performed a successful dilation of an obstructed valve in the baby’s heart in the mother’s womb under ultrasound guidance. “Some types of serious heart diseases can be diagnosed while the baby is in the mother’s womb. Sometimes, treating them in the womb may improve the outlook for the baby after birth and lead to near normal development,” they explained to media. “We placed a needle through the mother’s abdomen into the baby’s heart. Then, using a balloon catheter, we opened the obstructed valve to improve blood flow. We expect and hope that the baby’s heart will develop better and the heart disease will be less severe at birth,” explained the senior doctor who performed the surgery.
The time of operation was only 90 seconds. („It has to be done very quickly because you’re going to puncture the major heart chamber. So if something goes wrong, the baby will die.”) The pregnant woman, mother of the unborn baby, was 28-years-old. She had three previous pregnancy losses. The fetus and the mother are both doing well. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday praised doctors for successfully performing the complex surgery. “Proud of India’s doctors for their dexterity and innovation,” he wrote on Twitter.
