First Baby Born From Uterus Transplanted from Deceased Donor

By Maria Cheng for the Associated Press
Read more from Cheng


Baby born from transplanted uterus, from deceased donor

Brazilian doctors are reporting the world’s first baby born to a woman with a uterus transplanted from a deceased donor.

Eleven previous births have used a transplanted uterus, but from a living donor, usually a relative or friend. Experts said using a uterus from women who have died could make more transplants possible.

Ten previous attempts using deceased donors in the Czech Republic, Turkey, and the United States have failed.

This baby girl was delivered last December by a woman born without a uterus because of a rare syndrome. The woman — a 32-year-old psychologist — was initially apprehensive about the transplant, said Dr. Dani Ejzenberg, the transplant team’s lead doctor at the University of Sao Paulo School of Medicine. "This was the most important thing in her life," he said. "Now she comes in to show us the baby and she is so happy!"

The woman became pregnant through in vitro fertilization seven months after the transplant. The donor was a 45-year-old woman who had three children and died of a stroke.

The recipient, who was not identified, gave birth by cesarean section. Doctors also removed the uterus, partly so the woman would no longer need to take anti-rejection medications. Nearly a year later, mother and baby are both healthy.

Two more transplants are planned as part of the Brazilian study. Details of the first case were published Tuesday in the medical journal Lancet.

Uterus transplantation was pioneered by Swedish doctor, Mats Brannstrom, who has delivered eight children from women who each received a donor uterus from family members or friends. Two babies have been born at Baylor University Medical Center in Texas, and one in Serbia, also from transplants from living donors.

In 2016, doctors at the Cleveland Clinic transplanted a uterus from a deceased donor, but it failed after an infection developed.

"The Brazilian group has proven that using deceased donors is a viable option," said the clinic’s Dr. Tommaso Falcone, who was involved in the Ohio case. "It may give us a bigger supply of organs than we thought were possible."

The Cleveland program is continuing to use deceased donors. Falcone said the fact that the transplant was successful after the uterus was preserved in ice for nearly eight hours demonstrated how resilient the uterus is. Doctors try to keep the time an organ is without blood flow to a minimum.

Other experts said the knowledge gained from such procedures might also solve some lingering mysteries about pregnancies. "There are still lots of things we don’t understand about pregnancies, like how embryos implant," said Dr. Cesar Diaz, who co-authored an accompanying commentary in the journal. "These transplants will help us understand implantation and every stage of pregnancy."

Transplant team with baby

Related Reading:

The Lancet: Uterus transplantation from a deceased donor. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)32106-8/fulltext#articleInformation

Science Daily: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/12/181204183703.htm

CNN: https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/04/health/uterus-transplant-deceased-donor-study/index.html

Hire an Expert for the Type of Birth YOU Want


If there is one thing you can do RIGHT NOW to ensure your best birth experience, it is this: choose a care provider who is an EXPERT in the type of birth you are planning.

If you are planning a safe, skilled cesarean birth, you should hire someone who is an expert at cesarean sections. You wouldn’t hire a doctor to perform that procedure who said, "Well, actually, I’m not really comfortable with that type of birth, but I’ll let you do it if you want, I suppose..."

If you’re planning a safe, natural, unmedicated birth, you should hire someone who is an EXPERT at supporting natural birth. A doctor with a 30% c-section rate is not a natural birth expert. Neither is a doctor who does routine episiotomies, or doesn’t understand how to catch a baby unless mom is [lying] on her back. A doctor who says, "Well, most of my patients do end up getting an epidural, but if you want to go natural you can do that, I suppose..." is NOT an expert in unmedicated birth.

When you find the right care provider, they will understand your birth plan before you even show it to them -- because it is what they already do every day!

—Lauralyn Curtis

Read related content at Midwifery Today: The Heart and Science of Birth

Birthing Group: FB.com/groups/Birthing (holistic)
Pregnancy Moms Due [this year]: FB.com/groups/DueDateGroup (mainstream)
Peaceful Parenting Community: FB.com/groups/ExplorePeacefulParenting (gentle parenting group)

How to tell if a toy is for girls or boys...


When shopping this season, use this handy chart to determine if a toy is for girls or boys...

Hint: toys made for children are for all children, regardless of sex!


The Lasting Impact of Trauma and How We Can Help Survivors

By Ryan B.


The impact of severe trauma is possible to last a lifetime, and it can come and go.

The symptoms vary in each person. Sometimes trauma symptoms are not as apparent -- they can present though a down mood, or even physical symptoms. A person can often find themselves in a bad mood, or feeling physically sick, without a conscious understanding that there was a trigger or associated experience (time of year, smell, or anything that is associated with the trauma).

People can end up blaming themselves for the way they feel or call themselves 'selfish' and many other negative things, when in reality they are only experiencing the results of trauma. This can become a form of self abuse, or even a means to control the abuse that is coming. Again, the coping with past trauma is not always a conscious process.

What helps? What can a person who has been through trauma do? What can their loved ones do?

When a person who has been through trauma can talk about how they feel it helps. When the person is in a safe environment that doesn't tell them to 'get over it' directly or indirectly with statements like 'Why are you in such a bad mood?' it helps. When your loved ones understand this it helps.

Friends and family can even help an individual see what is happening before this person makes the connection that it is that time of year, or the physical symptoms, are trauma related. Loved ones can be attentive and aware.

Be Patient.

Telling someone who has survived trauma (even when that trauma was in infancy) that it is okay to speak and share as they feel like doing; that it is safe to talk any time, or share the negative emotion they are feeling, tends to allow the processing of trauma to go more quickly.

It is when someone holds things in, or tries to fight through the memories, associations, or emotions, that the impact of trauma is prolonged and continues to present itself time and time again through various means: anxiety, mood fluctuations, physical symptoms.

We are sending our love and support to trauma survivors. Reach out when you need to.

*******

Also by Ryan B.

A Father's Regret: http://www.SavingSons.org/2018/01/a-fathers-regret.html

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