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  • 2003-05-07 (xsd:date)
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  • Is This a Real Fetal Surgery Photo? (en)
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  • The image accompanying the text quoted above is real in the sense that it is indeed a photograph taken during a revolutionary fetal procedure undertaken on 19 August 1999 to fix the spina bifida lesion of a 21-week-old fetus in the womb. The operation was performed by a surgical team at Vanderbilt University in Nashville which developed a technique for correcting fetal problems in mid-pregnancy by temporarily removing the uterus, draining the amniotic fluid, performing surgery on the tiny fetus, then restoring the uterus back inside the mother. The patient shown above, Samuel Armas, was the 54th fetus operated on by the surgical team; Dr. Joseph Bruner, the surgeon whose hands are pictured above, alleviated the effects of the opening in Samuel's spine caused by the spina bifida, a congenital disease that often leads to paralysis and other problems. Pictures from the surgery were printed in a number of newspapers in the U.S. and around the world, including USA Today, and thanks to the remarkable surgical procedure performed by the Nashville team little Samuel was born healthy on 2 December 1999. However, it is not true, as described in the accompanying text, that these photographs were taken as Samuel's hand emerged from the mother's uterus to grasp the finger of Dr. Joseph Bruner as if thanking the doctor for the gift of life, or that Dr. Bruner said when his finger was grasped, it was the most emotional moment of his life. This misinformation has been propagated by many different sources, including the Michael Clancy, the photographer who snapped the pictures: What actually took place, as described in news reports of the surgery, was that [J]ust as surgeon Dr. Joseph Bruner was closing the incision in Julie Armas' uterus, Samuel's thumbnail-sized hand flopped out. Bruner lifted it gently and tucked it back in.2 The surgeon, Dr. Bruner, later elaborated on some of the exaggerated and false claims made about the photograph: (The dubious veracity of the photographer's version of events is highlighted by the disclaimer he appended to it on his web site, stating that it represented his opinion of the events as they took place during the surgery for Samuel.) (en)
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