Israeli First: Unique Operation Saves Newborn’s Life

Hadassah hospital medical staff performed a first-of-its-kind operation on a newborn with a hernia, saving her life.

By United With Israel Staff

When baby Bina was born, the delivery room team realized she was in respiratory distress. An ultrasound showed a diaphragmatic hernia.

Usually, babies born with this syndrome must undergo a major operation that involves opening the chest, moving organs and closing the diaphragm.

However, Arutz-7 reported that the director of the Pediatric Surgery Department at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, Dr. Amos Fruman, said his team decided to try a minimally invasive procedure instead, called thoracoscopic surgery.

Thoracoscopy uses two optic fibers and a camera to enter a body rather than having to fully open the chest cavity.

“Our team knows how to do this, but we had to make sure there was no cardiac or pulmonary problem common in those with a diaphragmatic hernia,” Dr. Fruman said, according to Arutz-7. “Despite the great challenge of thoracoscopic surgery, we wanted to make it easier for the baby. Our team was called in from home, and we carefully prepared for the first procedure of its kind here. It was quite an operation.”

Senior physician in pediatric surgery Dr. Diaa Zagiir, who performed the operation, highlighted the challenges involved, explaining that the area that must be entered is very small, especially in a baby.

“That’s why most surgeons prefer open chest surgery,”  Zegiir is quoted as saying by Arutz-7. “But we have the best technology, and we know how to use it. We realized that this was the best option for this baby.”

Had Bina received the standard surgery, her expected recovery time would have been several weeks. Through this new procedure, the infant needed emergency care for only a few days.

“Our baby Bina is healthy now, and against all odds this life-saving procedure took place quickly, with minimal suffering for our baby,” said Libby Preiger, the child’s mother. “Bina will grow up to be a healthy baby, thanks to the amazing staff at Hadassah who did not hesitate and chose the right surgical procedure for her. We will never forget it and will tell her all about it when she grows up.”