Description of Spina Bifida
- What is spina bifida?
- There are three kinds of spina bifida
- What are the effects?
- Hydrocephalus
- Picture of shunt
1.
What is spina bifida?
Spina bifida is a Latin term meaning 'split spine'. It is a neural tube
defect.
The
nervous system forms in the first month of development. It starts off
looking like a flat ribbon, then begins to change and sink down into the
back of the embryo (neural groove).
As
it sinks, the sides fold up (neural fold) and over and the edges fuse
together to form a tube (the neural tube) which develops into the spinal
cord and brain. The spinal vertebrae (backbones) then begin to form around
the tube
If
part of the neural tube does not close, the spine also does not close,
and spina bifida occurs.(The spine doesn't really split in half it just
doesn't finish closing.)
In more severe forms, the spinal cord and coverings protrude through the opening, which means that nerve damage occurs.
There is no cure for spina bifida.
Doctors operate as soon as possible to close the opening on the back,
but there is no operation that can fix damaged nerves.
