Open intrauterine repair of spina bifida aperta: Historical aspects, current availability, and clinical outcomes from the Latin American Spina Bifida Consortium

Objective: To determine the historical aspects, current availability, and clinical outcomes of open intrauterine repair of spina bifida aperta (IRSBA) in Spanish-speaking Latin American countries. Methods: Cases were collected from centers with at least 2 years of experience and a minimum of 10 open IRSBA interventions by December 2020. Clinical variables were compared to the results of the Management of Myelomeningocele Study (MOMS) trial. Results: Clinical experience with 314 cases from seven centers was reviewed. Most cases (n = 189, 60.2%) were performed between 24 and 25.9 weeks' gestation. Delivery at less than 30 weeks' gestation occurred in 36 cases (11.5%) and the overall perinatal mortality rate was 5.4% (17 of 314). The rate of maternal complications was low, including the need for blood transfusion (n = 3, 0.9%) and dehiscence or a thin uterine scar (n = 4, 1.3%). No cases of maternal death were recorded. Fifteen neonates required additional surgical repair of the spinal defect (4.8%) and 63 of 167 infants (37.7%) required a cerebrospinal fluid diversion procedure. Only two of the seven centers reported preliminary experience with fetoscopic IRSBA. Conclusions: Clinical experience and outcomes were within the expected results reported by the MOMS trial. There is still very limited experience with fetoscopic IRSBA in this part of the world.