ATLANTA, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- A 3-month-old Iraqi girl with spina bifida, brought to the United States by soldiers, has been released from an Atlanta hospital after surgery.
Neurosurgeons at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta operated Monday on Baby Noor, as she's being called, and said Friday they will continue to monitor her condition, CNN reports.
The surgery realigned and enclosed her spinal column after the birth defect was exacerbated because it was left untreated in Iraq, possibly because of a lack of access to medical facilities due to war.
Spina bifida sufferers have a spinal cord exposed because vertebrae don't enclose it completely.
Georgia Army National Guard's 48th Brigade soldiers discovered Baby Noor during house-to-house raids in Baghdad.
U.S. officials and charity groups coordinated with the soldiers to bring her to Atlanta for surgery.
Dr. Roger Hudgins said they will keep an eye on fluid buildup to prevent a second surgery.
He said she will most likely never walk but would have died without the operation.
