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In-utero procedure is a lifesaver for baby Lucas. Read his story.
Doctors perform first-ever in-utero embolization in Florida at Holtz Children's Hospital
Thirty five weeks into her pregnancy, Lainey Ramos Arango's world changed drastically. Doctors said an ultrasound indicated a potential blood vessel anomaly in her baby's brain. Further testing confirmed a rare vein of Galen malformation. Rodrigo Ruano, MD, PhD, director of the UHealth Jackson Fetal Care Center and division chief of UHealth Jackson Maternal-Fetal Medicine, assembled a multi-disciplinary team to brainstorm the best option for Arango and her baby, including colleague and renowned expert on the condition, Robert M. Starke, MD, co-director of endovascular neurosurgery at Jackson Memorial Hospital, and a UHealth - University of Miami Health System neurosurgeon and neuroradiologist. Dr. Ruano and the team determined an in-utero intervention to correct the malformation offered the best prognosis. The procedure had only been performed a handful of times around the world, and only once before by Dr. Ruano. Lucas Hormachea was born three weeks later via C-section and doctors say his heart function is normal. Drs. Ruano and Starke were joined by a multidisciplinary group of subspecialists that included Holtz Children's Hospital's neonatal team, pediatric anaesthesiologists, pediatric cardiologists, and pediatric radiologists for the groundbreaking surgery.