Rare Birth Defect Leaves Boy With Giant Red Balloon-Like Sac on His Back

Doctors have documented a young boy born with an eye-popping condition: a red, balloon-like sac on his back.

Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital details The case was filed last month New England Journal of MedicineAs part of a regular section highlighting unusual medical images. The boy’s ballooning sac was a rare complication of a relatively common birth defect, which left an opening in his spine. Despite its alarming appearance, doctors were able to successfully remove the sac without any major problems and the boy appears to have recovered with no lasting developmental problems.

The boy was born with a type of neural tube defect (NTD), a condition affect about 1 in every 1,000 people. The neural tube is a structure that forms early in fetal pregnancy and is the foundation from which the brain and spinal cord will later develop. Usually, the tube closes completely by the fourth week of pregnancy, but sometimes it doesn’t close completely, resulting in a gap in the spine and spine. This type of NFD is specifically known as spina bifida.

in In the mildest casesPeople may never experience any symptoms of their spina bifida, often not finding out about it until adulthood through an incidental imaging test. in In the most severe casesA baby’s spinal cord can push through the opening and form a sac containing spinal fluid, meninges (one of the protective layers of the brain), and nervous system tissue or nerves. This form can lead to serious problems such as structural brain defects, trouble moving normally, and lifelong developmental delays.

The boy’s form of spina bifida fell somewhere in between, known as a meningocele. Her distended pouch was certainly large, measuring about 3 inches by 2.8 inches by 2 inches. Importantly, though, it contains only spinal fluid and meninges, and no spinal cord or brain tissue. An image of the sac is seen hereFair warning though: it’s pretty uncomfortable.

There are things that can increase the chance of being born with NFD, such as the mother taking certain medications or a lack of folic acid early in development (which is why expectant mothers is often recommended taking folic acid supplements). But according to doctors, both mother and fetus had no existing high risk factors. So it seems it was an unfortunate incident.

Fortunately, six days after the boy’s birth, doctors surgically removed the sac and repaired the boy’s defect. After four days, he recovered sufficiently and was discharged from the hospital. And at the six-month follow-up visit, the boy’s development was found to be normal.