Comprehensive Care for Congenital Musculoskeletal Anomalies

Congenital musculoskeletal and limb disorders can pose long-term challenges and cause life-threatening symptoms. Prenatal detection helps us identify the specific anomaly and the pathology of each condition and allows for early involvement from a multidisciplinary team.

At Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's Center for Fetal Diagnosis & Treatment, patients have access to some of the most experienced pediatric orthopaedic surgeons in the world. Our orthopaedic specialists have a deep understanding of the correlation between prenatal diagnosis and postnatal severity. They collaborate with our fetal imaging and maternal-fetal medicine specialists, obstetricians, and geneticists to accurately diagnose congenital musculoskeletal conditions before birth and counsel families on prognosis and treatment options after birth.

Our orthopaedic team has experience treating even the rarest musculoskeletal conditions on a regular basis and has developed innovative techniques and devices for the treatment of many conditions. These specialists work closely with other specialists throughout our Hospital to provide comprehensive, family-centered care, often into adulthood.

Our Winter 2018 issue of In Utero Insider provides a detailed look at the resources and expertise we offer patients whose pregnancies present with congenital musculoskeletal anomalies.

• Early Confirmation of Spine Deformities Improves Prenatal Counseling
• Using Low-dose Fetal CT to Diagnose Skeletal Dysplasias
• Tackling Talipes Early with a Team Approach
• State-of-the-art Care for Thoracic Insufficiency Syndrome
• Managing Congenital Deformities of the Upper Limbs
• New Director Takes Helm of Spina Bifida Program
• Beyond Therapy: What Fetal Therapy Coordinators Tell Us

Read more articles on this topic.

Select References

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Coleman BG, Langer JE, Horii SC. The diagnostic features of spina bifida: the role of ultrasound. Fetal Diagn Ther. 2015;37(3):179-196.

Defrancesco CJ, Shah DK, Rogers BH, Shah AS. (2017) The epidemiology of brachial plexus birth palsy in the United States: Declining incidence and evolving risk factors. [Published online ahead of print Oct. 9 2017] J Pediatr Orthop.

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Karlin JG, Roth MK, Patil V, Cordell D, Trevino H, Simmons J, Campbell RM, Joshi AP. Management of thoracic insufficiency syndrome in patients with Jarcho-Levin syndrome using VEPTRs (vertical expandable prosthetic titanium ribs). J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2014;96(21):e181.

LaGreca J, Flynn T, Cahill PJ, Samdani A, Vitale MG, El-Hawary R, Smith JT, Phillips JH, Flynn JM, Glotzbecker M, Garg S; Children's Spine Study Group. Patients without intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) alerts during VEPTR implantation did not sustain neurological injury during subsequent routine expansions: A retrospective multicenter cohort study. J Pediatr Orthop. 2017;37(8):e619-e624.

Mistovich RJ, Jacobs LJ, Campbell RM, Spiegel DA, Flynn JM, Baldwin KD. Infection control in pediatric spinal deformity surgery: A systematic and critical analysis review. JBJS Rev. 2017;5(5):e3.

Nossov SB, Curatolo E, Campbell RM, Mayer OH, Garg S, Cahill PJ. Children's Spine Study Group. VEPTR: Are we reducing respiratory assistance requirements? [Published online ahead of print April 10, 2017] J Pediatr Orthop.  

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Victoria T, Epelman M, Coleman BG, Horii S, Oliver ER, Mahboubi S, Khalek N, Kasperski S, Edgar JC, Jaramillo D. Low-dose fetal CT in the prenatal evaluation of skeletal dysplasias and other severe skeletal abnormalities. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2013;200(5):989-1000.