The conversation recounts how Van Meigham paired up with Francis Lebouthillier, an associate professor of sculpture at OCAD University, to develop silicon models of an in-utero fetus for a complex new surgery for spina bifida (a condition where nerve elements in the baby’s spine are exposed).
Van Meigham explained that the current fetal surgery “involves a major cut in the mom’s abdomen to bring the uterus out onto the mom’s abdomen, followed by a large cut usually about 3 to 4 inches into the uterus to expose the baby’s back.”
At the Ontario Fetal Centre, based at Mount Sinai Hospital, they’re introducing a laparoscopic version of the surgery to reduce the scar tissue that can cause complications post-surgery.
Robotic arms, essentially “straight sticks,” are inserted in minor incisions through the mother’s abdomen to operate on the baby while in the uterus. The robotic arms are responsive, but Van Meigham said it’s difficult “to do small maneuvers in a small confined space inside the uterine cavity.”
Surgeons needed practice. That’s where the artist Lebouthillier and his silicon model came in.
