DISCOVERING that your baby has a severe condition is difficult news for any expecting parent – all the more so when it has the potential to dramatically impact brain development and will require surgical intervention just days after birth.
Dr Darsi Boungou-Poati, a neurosurgeon practising at Netcare Pinehaven Hospital, said that this was the case for one of his youngest ever patients, who, at just 11 days old, underwent a complex procedure for hydrocephalus, or blockage of water flow in the brain.
This diagnosis came