Surgical Outcomes of Myelomeningocele Repair: a 20-Year Experience from a Single Center in a Middle-Income Country

Objective Spina bifida primarily affects people of low and middle socioeconomic status. Herein, we describe the outcome of myelomeningocele surgical management in Iran and predictors of its postoperative complications and mortality. Methods This retrospective chart review studies the children who underwent surgical management for myelomeningocele in Shiraz, Fars province, Iran, from May 2001 to September 2020. To this end, we investigated mortality and 30-day complications and the factors that determined the operation's outcome. Results 256 patients were enrolled. The median age at the operation was roughly eight days (IQR: 7). The most common site of involvement of Myelomeningocele (MMC) was Lumbosacral (86%, n = 204). At the evaluation conducted prior to operation, CSF leaking was observed in 7% (n=16) of the patients. Postoperatively, 5.7% of the patients were expired in the 30 days following the operation (n = 14), while 24% needed readmission (n = 47). The most common complications leading to readmission included wound dehiscence (n = 10, 42%) and wound purulence (n = 6, 25%). No variable was significantly associated with postoperative complication except for the site of the lesion (p-value = 0.035) and the presence of the lipid content in the defect (p-value = 0.044). Conclusions Most patients born with MMC are referred for the neurosurgical evaluation following their birth; however, as results show there is much left to be desired compared with the 48h recommended by The Congress of Neurological Surgeons. Here, we concluded that presence of lipid compartment in the lesion and the site of the lesion are the two factor that were associated with the rate of mortality. However, further investigation into preoperative interventions and risk factors to mitigate risk of postoperational complications and mortality is highly encouraged. We highly advocate for the investigation and dissemination of the outcome of the conventional surgical management of MMC in financially restrained areas; because they can show the limitation these settings are confronted with (that are in a way unique to them and different from the resourceful settings) and provide a model for other similar areas with limited suitable care.