Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/26558
4A – Daily News – Monday, March 7, 2011 Vitality & health — Ten years ago, Anna Williamson's parents took a perilous risk when they elected to have a neurologi- cal impairment on her back mended in an experimental surgery before she was born. As Anna plays basket- ball and scores A's on her report card, the Williamsons have long believed they made a life-enhancing choice. Now a study confirms the pioneering Holly Springs, N.C., family was right. The research, released this month in the New Eng- land Journal of Medicine, demonstrates that operating on a fetus in the womb can reduce brain swelling and paralysis for children like Anna who are diagnosed with the neural tube defect known as spina bifida. As a result, the proce- dure may soon be more widely available. "It's a very big deal," said Dr. Nancy Chescheir, a pro- fessor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Universi- ty of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Medicine, who was among the first to begin performing the proce- dure in 2000. Chescheir was a member of the surgical team that operated on Anna Williamson. The young- ster's parents, Jason and Susan Williamson, elected to undergo the fetal surgery when it was still a radical intervention with only anec- dotal evidence of success. The Williamsons' story, "A Chance for Anna," was chronicled in October 2000 Family looks back on fetal surgery as a success RALEIGH, N.C. (MCT) has a disability," Susan Williamson said. Yet a decade ago, when the Williamsons opted to have the surgery, there were only about 100 other cases to help guide them as they contemplated their options. "We were doing what we thought was right for Anna and our family," Susan Williamson said, adding that she was heartened by success stories but yearned for scientific data that would have made the deci- sion easier. Now, she said, the trial's MCT photo Anna Williamson runs sprints during basketball practice at church in Cary, N.C., March 2. Doctors operated on Anna while she was in the womb to correct spina bifida. in The News & Observer. Diagnosed during preg- nancy, spina bifida is a lead- ing cause of paralysis and has no cures and few effec- tive interventions — until the fetal surgery was tried. The operation requires a risky incision through the mother's uterus to the devel- oping fetus. Doctors then repair the spinal lesion on the fetus' back, which is sometimes an open wound, and other times a bulging cyst. By intervening before birth, researchers had hoped the brain and spinal column could then develop more normally and reduce prob- lems. The trial, analyzing 158 Saturday, March 26 County-wide Customer Appreciation Days Start And more … from Tehama County’s most customer- minded local businesses … Special section of sales, discounts, bargains Exclusively in the D NEWSAILY RED BLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY On Saturday, March 26 It’s the way these local businesses say “Thank You” for remembering to “shop local,” supporting the tax base that provides local services, protecting local jobs and much more. Don’t Miss It! Look for posters around town the week of March 21 In the windows of participating stores and businesses. BUSINESSES: To participate contact your Daily News advertising representative (530) 527-2151 Ask about our Open Fit Technology Discreet and Comfortable Red Bluff Community Center 1500 So. Jackson Wed., March 9, 2011 10:00 am - 3:00 pm 1-800-488-9906 Appointments CALL Limited Professional Personal Convenient • Premium Digital Hearing Aids for every budget • FREE hearing evaluations • Service/Repair, all makes and models • Batteries & accessories • Preferred provider for most insurance plans: Including PERS, Carpenters, Blue Cross/ Blue Shield, etc. • Low monthly payment plan available • Trial Period/ Satisfaction Guaranteed Performed for proper amplification selection only. pregnant women, bears out those hopes. The mothers were ran- domly assigned to either undergo the fetal surgery, or get traditional therapy that mends the baby's lesion after birth. Among the chil- dren who had prenatal surgery, 42 percent could walk without braces or crutches, compared to 21 percent of those who did not get the intervention. The fetal surgery group also per- formed better on mental tests. In addition, far fewer of the surgical patients needed a shunt implanted to drain brain fluid — a major com- plication of spina bifida that can lead to infections, addi- tional surgeries, and declin- ing mental abilities. Of the prenatal surgery group, 40 percent required a shunt, compared to 83 percent of those getting traditional care. The study's encouraging results were foretold by Anna Williamson's experi- ence. Now 10, the fourth- grader at Cary Christian School shows little evi- dence of having spina bifi- da, except for a slight hitch as she walks. She loves sports — "She's just begging me every day to go play golf," says her dad, Jason — and also excels at art, sewing and handcrafts. A curious explorer, her favorite sub- jects are science and histo- ry. "It's easy to forget she confirmation that the surgery offers benefit pro- vides clarity for new parents facing the same dilemma. "It gives people hope, and I'm thankful for that," she said. "That is such a huge thing." Still, the surgery remains dangerous. It often triggers premature births — Anna was born five weeks early — and the moms face complicated subsequent pregnancies. Susan Williamson's second child, Patrick, was also five weeks premature, although her two youngest children arrived with few complica- tions. Only Anna has spina bifida. The surgery is also expensive, and Chescheir said she's not sure if and when insurance companies will routinely cover it, despite the study's findings that it improves the health of many children. She said the University of North Carolina Hospitals is working through those issues as it considers offer- ing the surgery. "We hope to begin this year," she said. "I think we're positioned experi- ence-wise to do this." Chescheir, who trained at Vanderbilt University where the Williamsons had their surgery, performed 10 of the procedures before the research trial was launched in 2003. She and colleagues hoped to be included as a trial site, along with Vander- bilt, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the Uni- versity of California, San Francisco. The hospital lost that bid, but Chescheir worked on the study in other capacities. Meanwhile, all other hospi- tals in the country voluntar- ily agreed to forego offering the surgery so they wouldn't draw potential participants from the study and slow its pace. fitness Nutrition Quiz: Folate alert (MCT) This just in: Folate, that enriching B vitamin, can help slow age-related hearing loss. Eh _ what's that? Folate can help ... you get the idea. Take our quiz about folate's bene- fits. 1 According to a study in the Journal of Nutri- tion, subjects over age 50 who had low folate levels were how much more likely to experience hear- ing loss? a) 39 percent b) 29 percent c) 19 percent 2 Researchers have theorized that elevated levels of homocysteine, which folate has been shown to lower in the body, cause the hearing loss. What is homocys- teine? a) A peptide hormone released by the stomach that, among other things, activates hunger. b) An amino acid in the blood that can cause vas- cular disease. c) A mineral, absorbed by the tissues, that nour- ishes muscle mitochon- dria. 3 What is the daily value for folate? a) 400 micrograms b) 4,000 micrograms c) 2 grams 4 Which food, at 45 percent of the daily value, is among the highest in folate? a) asparagus, four spears b) black-eyed peas, half a cup c) beef liver, 3 ounces 5 Why is folate impor- tant for pregnant women? a) It helps grow cells during rapid cell division. b) It's a nutrient needed to prevent anemia. c) Both a and b. Erectile dysfunction linked to aspirin and other NSAIDs By THOMAS H. MAUGH II Los Angeles Times (MCT) Daily use of aspirin and other nonsteroidal anti- inflammatory drugs, commonly known as NSAIDs, is associated with a 22 percent increase in the risk of erectile dysfunction, Kaiser researchers found in a study of more than 80,000 men in Southern California. The results were a surprise because erectile dysfunction, commonly abbreviated ED, is thought to be caused by inflammation, and the researchers expected that use of the drugs would alleviate the problem. Although the team controlled for a variety of other confounding factors, including age, smok- ing status, diabetes and other conditions, it is still possible that the men were taking the drugs to treat an underlying condition that was also caus- ing the ED, the team wrote in report to be pub- lished in the April issue of the Journal of Urolo- gy. In addition to aspirin, other NSAIDs include ibuprofen, naproxen, indomethacin and Celecox- ib, among others. Dr. Joseph M. Gleason of the Kaiser Perma- nente Los Angeles Medical Center and his col- leagues studied 80,966 men, ages 45 to 69, enrolled in Kaiser health plans beginning in 2002. The team assessed the men's use of NSAIDs based on Kaiser's pharmacy records of filled pre- scriptions and the men's own responses to ques- tionnaires about over-the-counter drugs. About 47.4 percent of the men in the study were consid- ered regular NSAID users and 29.3 percent reported moderate or severe ED. The researchers concluded that regular NSAID use "is associated with erectile dysfunction beyond what would be expected due to age and comorbidity." Their results were similar to those obtained in a much smaller study in Finland. The team is continuing to collect data from the men in the study in hopes of better understanding what is happening. ANSWERS: 1: a; 2: b; 3: a; 4: c; 5: c