Spina Bifida News and Research

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Spina bifida is a neural tube defect that happens in the first month of pregnancy when the spinal column does not close completely. According to the Mayo Clinic, approximately one in every 2,000 children born in the U.S. is diagnosed with spina bifida. Risk factors include the presence of a neural tube defect in a previous child, lack of folic acid, some medications, diabetes and the mother's age. Most patients with spina bifida have neurogenic bladders. Neurogenic bladders function poorly and over time, without correction, can result in kidney damage and ultimately kidney failure.

New vascularized grafts may improve bladder surgery for children

Can growing blood vessels within a lab-engineered graft improve bladder reconstruction for children? For more than two decades, UC Davis pediatric urologic surgeon Eric Kurzrock has been developing and testing grafts to avoid the complications after standard enterocystoplasty, a surgery for bladder augmentation.

12 Jun 2026

Women without health insurance are far less likely to take folic acid supplement

A study reveals healthcare access, particularly insurance coverage, significantly impacts folic acid supplement use among U.S. women of reproductive age.

10 Jun 2026

Healthcare and insurance access influence folic acid use among women

Access to healthcare and insurance coverage strongly influence whether women take recommended amounts of folic acid to help prevent serious birth defects, according to University of California, Irvine researchers using the National Institutes of Health's All of Us Research Program data.

8 Jun 2026

Review explores diagnosis and management of perioperative anaphylaxis during anesthesia

Perioperative anaphylaxis is a rare, life‑threatening condition during anesthesia. The unique setting – multiple drugs, patient draping, and altered physiology – causes higher mortality than anaphylaxis elsewhere.

29 May 2026

Study reveals the physics behind neural tube closure in embryos

In about one out of every 1,000 pregnancies, the neural tube, a key nervous system structure, fails to close properly.

21 Apr 2026

Combining stem cell therapy with fetal surgery shows promise for treating myelomeningocele

A phase 1 clinical trial published in The Lancet has shown that combining stem cell therapy with standard fetal surgery before birth is a safe and promising approach to treat myelomeningocele, a severe form of spina bifida.

26 Feb 2026

Study reports life expectancies of spina bifida patients by age, sex, and severity of impairment

Studies have reported on survival probabilities of people born with open spina bifida, a condition where the spinal cord and nerves are exposed through an opening in the back.

11 Feb 2026

New soft robotic probe enables continuous monitoring of fetus's vital signs

Northwestern University researchers have developed the first device that can continuously track a fetus's vital signs while still in the uterus - a feat that previously has not been possible.

26 Jan 2026

Why the form of vitamin B12 you take may matter more than your intake

This comprehensive review examines vitamin B12 absorption, physiological roles, deficiency states, and dietary sources, with particular attention to differences between natural and synthetic forms. The authors conclude that while all B12 forms raise circulating levels, methylcobalamin may offer advantages in specific clinical contexts, especially where absorption or metabolic conversion is impaired.

10 Dec 2025

UTHealth Houston researchers receive NIH grant for fetoscopic spina bifida repair study

A five-year, $2.8 million grant was awarded to researchers at UTHealth Houston by the National Institutes of Health to evaluate the long-term effects on patients enrolled in the "Cryopreserved Human Umbilical Cord as a Meningeal Patch in Fetoscopic Spina Bifida Repair" trial.

1 Dec 2025

Study warns of unsafe antiseizure drug use despite rising access

In a study carried out in collaboration with the World Health Organization, two Aston University academics have found that while access to antiseizure medication in low- and middle-income countries is growing, it is not necessarily always prescribed safely.

11 Nov 2025

Using light to control tissue folding in developing embryos

The complex 3D shapes of brains, lungs, eyes, hands, and other vital bodily structures emerge from the way in which flat 2D sheets of cells fold during embryonic development.

21 Aug 2025

Understanding the multifactorial causes of spina bifida

Spina bifida is among the most common and debilitating neural tube defects, affecting approximately 1 in every 2,875 newborns in the United States.

11 Aug 2025

Harvard researchers develop tool to personalize brain shunt implants

Millions of people worldwide suffer from hydrocephalus, or a buildup of excess cerebrospinal fluid in the brain, and which recently received greater attention when Billy Joel announced his diagnosis.

21 Jul 2025

Taking specific antiseizure drugs during pregnancy linked to increased risk of malformations at birth

A new study that examined older and newer medications to treat seizures has found that using some medications during pregnancy is linked to an increased risk of malformations at birth, or birth defects.

16 Jul 2025

Early vitamin D deficiency increases risk of ADHD, schizophrenia and autism

Newborn babies with a vitamin D deficiency have a higher chance of later developing mental disorders such as ADHD, schizophrenia and autism, a major study involving The University of Queensland has found.

14 May 2025

Scientists make breakthrough in understanding the causes of spina bifida

Scientists at Rady Children's Institute for Genomic Medicine, and the Department of Neurosciences and Pediatrics at the University of California, San Diego, have made a significant breakthrough in understanding the causes of spina bifida, a serious birth defect affecting thousands of newborns each year.

1 Apr 2025

AI helps sonographers detect fetal abnormalities faster during 20-week pregnancy scan

Artificial intelligence (AI) could help sonographers identify any abnormalities at the 20-week pregnancy screening scan almost twice as quickly, without reducing the accuracy or reliability of diagnoses, a new study has shown.

27 Mar 2025

New insights into anti-seizure medications during pregnancy

Two common antiseizure medications, lamotrigine and levetiracetam, are safe to use during pregnancy, according to a Stanford Medicine-led study.

3 Dec 2024

University of Arizona receives $1.7 million for spina bifida research

Researchers at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson received $1.7 million in funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to improve knowledge regarding the prevalence, mortality and health outcomes for people of all ages living with spina bifida.

2 Dec 2024