The history of the surgical repair of spina bifida.

INTRODUCTION

The history of surgical spina bifida repair has seen many successes and failures. Many early surgeons attempted treatment of open spina bifida defects before a clear understanding of the disease process or pathology had been discovered.

CONCLUSIONS

The attempts, while often fruitless, served to better our understanding of the disease and represent stepping-stones to the treatment we successfully use today. The present paper reviews the history of the surgical treatment of myelomeningoceles.