5-year-old boy healthy after undergoing surgery as a fetus
Doctors in Xinhua Hospital check the heart of a 5-year-old boy, who received heart surgery while in his mother's womb.
A 5-year-old boy, who received congenital heart surgery while in his mother's womb, returned to Xinhua Hospital for a checkup on Tuesday.
Doctors said the boy's heart function and structure have both met normal standards, an indication that the treatment was successful.
The intrauterine surgery, which was conducted on July 17 in 2018, is the first of its kind ever conducted by a single hospital in Asia.
The boy was treated as a 32-week fetus after being diagnosed with a rare life-threatening heart condition. Without medical intervention, experts said, the fetus would have died outside its mother's womb.
He was delivered on August 29 with good data on physical development.
The heart problem, congenital stenosis of the aortic valve, was detected during a prenatal check. The defect can result in the left side of the heart becoming severely underdeveloped, leading to heart failure.
Doctors conducted a 30-minute operation to improve blood flow to the left side of the heart in order to support its development.
"Babies who are treated while in the womb usually have very serious heart problems. Without intervention, they could die upon delivery," said Dr Sun Kun, president of Xinhua Hospital.
"The boy received another two heart surgeries in our hospital to further perfect the heart structure and function. The medical intervention didn't just save his life, but also provided him with a better quality of life."
Sun said China's medical capabilities for congenital heart disease have significantly developed over the past decades, allowing a great number of such children to enjoy a healthy life.
