Grey's: Score Another One for the Researchers
Grey's researchers have done another excellent job of bringing a rare and unusual medical condition to the attention of the public. This time, it's VATER syndrome (or VATER association), a series of birth defects of yet unknown cause which have been described as occurring together, highlighted in the episode "Six Days," part 1.
VATER is an acronym that stands for the specific birth defects: Vertebral abnormalities, Anal atresia or imperforate anus (defects in the anal opening), TracheoEsophageal fistula (a connection between the trachea, or windpipe, and the esophagus), and Renal (kidney) abnormalities.
Sometimes heart (Cardiac) problems and Limb anomalies (particularly developmental problems with the bone in the arm known as the radius) also occur with these defects; in this case the acronym is changed to VACTERL.
In this episode, an unfortunate patient of Izzie's has the VATER association. She has severe scoliosis (curvature of the spine) as a result of the congenital defects in her vertebrae, but she's in the hospital for treatment for kidney stones (which can occur with the improperly developed kidneys). Like all children born with these defects, she probably doesn't have all of the conditions in the association, and the range of severity of the individual defects varies widely among people with the condition. In fact, since the manifestations of the various defects are so different, along with the fact that not all of the defects are present in every case, an exact determination of the number of people affected with this condition is nearly impossible.
But of course, we know it's rare. As is Derek's proposed treatment for her scoliosis, of which all we know now is that it involves "removing her spine." Presumably this means an experimental treatment involving the resection of part of her vertebrae. We'll know more about this next week, but if there are any spine surgeons who'd like to comment on what you believe he proposes to do, by all means enlighten the rest of us!
Finally, we can end with another vocabulary lesson. When George discusses his dad's surgery with Burke, he says he's worried because the procedure is associated with a 50% "morbidity" rate, and Burke agrees, saying that yes, only 50% survive the procedure. Not quite correct.
"Morbidity" refers to complications of a procedure (such as excessive bleeding or infection following an operation); "mortality" refers to the actual death rate from the procedure. So the correct phrase would have been "this operation has a 50% mortality rate."
We're hoping this lovable character won't become a statistic, but it doesn't look too good for him.
Related Links:
VATER is an acronym that stands for the specific birth defects: Vertebral abnormalities, Anal atresia or imperforate anus (defects in the anal opening), TracheoEsophageal fistula (a connection between the trachea, or windpipe, and the esophagus), and Renal (kidney) abnormalities.
Sometimes heart (Cardiac) problems and Limb anomalies (particularly developmental problems with the bone in the arm known as the radius) also occur with these defects; in this case the acronym is changed to VACTERL.
In this episode, an unfortunate patient of Izzie's has the VATER association. She has severe scoliosis (curvature of the spine) as a result of the congenital defects in her vertebrae, but she's in the hospital for treatment for kidney stones (which can occur with the improperly developed kidneys). Like all children born with these defects, she probably doesn't have all of the conditions in the association, and the range of severity of the individual defects varies widely among people with the condition. In fact, since the manifestations of the various defects are so different, along with the fact that not all of the defects are present in every case, an exact determination of the number of people affected with this condition is nearly impossible.
But of course, we know it's rare. As is Derek's proposed treatment for her scoliosis, of which all we know now is that it involves "removing her spine." Presumably this means an experimental treatment involving the resection of part of her vertebrae. We'll know more about this next week, but if there are any spine surgeons who'd like to comment on what you believe he proposes to do, by all means enlighten the rest of us!
Finally, we can end with another vocabulary lesson. When George discusses his dad's surgery with Burke, he says he's worried because the procedure is associated with a 50% "morbidity" rate, and Burke agrees, saying that yes, only 50% survive the procedure. Not quite correct.
"Morbidity" refers to complications of a procedure (such as excessive bleeding or infection following an operation); "mortality" refers to the actual death rate from the procedure. So the correct phrase would have been "this operation has a 50% mortality rate."
We're hoping this lovable character won't become a statistic, but it doesn't look too good for him.
Related Links:
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