From Radio Netherlands Worldwide:

Pediatric neurosurgeons from 12 countries, writing in an article in the medical journal “Child’s Nervous System,” have expressed concern over the practice in the Netherlands of actively carrying out euthanasia on babies with spina bifida.

Speaking for the Dutch Pediatric Association, Edward Verhagan rejected the international criticism, arguing that treatment should not be given to infants unless there is some hope of improvement as a result of the treatment.

The current debate was touched off by Dutch pediatric neurosurgeon Rob de Jong, writing in the same journal. De Jong surveyed medical cases and found a number in which physicians dismissed patients as having no hope, only to find later that their initial diagnoses were incorrect. In one such case, a South African child with spina bifida was denied treatment, and years later was found to be alive and leading a “reasonably independent” life. “There is no reason whatsoever for active life-termination of these newborns,” he wrote. (more…)

From the Charlotte News & Observer, Winston-Salem [NC] Journal:

Rates of spina bifida and other neural tube defects have declined in North Carolina by at least 40 percent since 1995, according to state data. The drop is being attributed to public awareness campaigns aimed at increasing intake of folic acid.

Two advocacy groups, the N.C. Folic Acid Council and the March of Dimes, also credited the passing of the low-carb diet craze with the lowered rate, which was reported by the N.C. State Center for Health Statistics. “Yet, there are still too many babies born with spina bifida, said Amy Mullenix, their statewide coordinator.

None of the public health experts interviewed pointed to prenatal testing as a reason for the drop in the rate of spina bifida, even though neural tube defects are among the primary targets of such testing.

(more…)

From the Wisconsin State Journal:

A new Nike commercial features UW-Whitewater athlete Matt Scott, who pummels a pair of basketballs as he reels off all of the possible excuses for not working out.

Then, the camera pans down to the … way Scott is different than most of us: He’s been in a wheelchair his whole life, because he was born with spinal bifida.

(more…)

Associated Press story in the International Herald Tribune:

New Zealand authorities said Friday they refused a visa for a Samoan baby with severe deformities, saying that expert medical treatment would not help, despite the tens of thousands of U.S. dollars raised to assist the child. (more…)