Doctors at the University of Kansas Hospital in Kansas City saved the life of a three-week old infant by using surgical superglue to stop a bleeding brain aneurysm, CNN reported Monday.
Ashlyn Julian, born May 16, started to worry her parents when she began "screaming all the time and throwing up." When University of Kansas Hospital physicians found an almond-sized aneurysm in the newborn's brain, they resolved to try using superglue to seal it and stop the bleeding.
"We've been using super glue for medical applications for 30 to 40 years," Dr. Koji Ebersole said told KCTV. "Using it inside the blood vessels of the brain is not uncommon. It's uncommon in such a young child."
Ebersole said that his team inserted a micro-catheter into Ashlyn's hip and sent it all the way to her brain.
"The only way I could close that aneurysm with that small of an instrument was with the glue," he said. "Our instruments are several feet long. I just needed a couple of inches to get the job done. . . . We were able to navigate through the twists and turns of her body and brain to get to the aneurysm."
Doctors believe Ashlyn has completely recovered from the ordeal.
"I think it's going to be a normal childhood." Ebersole said.
KCTV5
