Doctors have successfully performed groundbreaking surgery on an unborn baby to correct a severe birth defect while the infant was still inside its mother's womb. The procedure took place in the United States on Maisie Savage, from London, when she was 26 weeks pregnant.

Baby Theo, now five months old and in good health, was diagnosed with gastroschisis, a condition where the abdominal wall does not develop correctly, causing the intestines to grow outside the body. This pioneering surgery marks a significant advancement in fetal medicine, offering a potential new treatment pathway for such complex conditions.

During the operation, surgeons partially exposed the mother's womb and used keyhole techniques to gently reposition the baby's organs back into his abdomen. Theo was the third infant globally to participate in a clinical trial for this innovative procedure. His parents, Maisie Savage, 29, and Josh French, 36, expressed immense relief and gratitude for the successful surgery.

Gastroschisis affects approximately one in 3,000 babies born in the UK annually. While milder cases may require weeks of intensive care and surgical correction after birth, Theo's condition was classified as complex gastroschisis. Such cases can necessitate up to six months in neonatal intensive care, multiple surgeries, prolonged intravenous feeding, and potentially even an intestinal transplant, with a mortality rate of about 10% even with optimal care.

Initially, Theo's parents were unaware of the severity of his condition, only learning about it around the 20-week scan. The diagnosis of gastroschisis came as a shock. At 24 weeks gestation, specialists at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital prepared them for the significant challenges ahead. However, due to the complexity of Theo's case, they were referred to Texas Children's Hospital in Houston.

There, a specialized team led by Dr. Michael Belfort, who had previously pioneered similar in-utero procedures for spina bifida, was conducting the first-of-its-kind clinical trial for complex gastroschisis. Dr. Belfort serves as the clinical lead for the trial.

Maisie was advised to travel to Texas immediately and remain there for the remainder of her pregnancy, a decision she described as "huge." As part of the trial's protocol, she first underwent a procedure in Leuven Hospital, Belgium, where specialists administered a Botox injection through her womb into Theo's abdominal wall to relax the muscles, facilitating the subsequent surgical repair.

The surgery was performed in November last year in Texas. Following the successful in-utero procedure, Theo was carried to term and born in Texas. His parents have described him as a "little miracle."