Mumbai to get its first birth defect management clinic

Prevention is better than cure and preventing something right at the onset is even better. This is what the civic body seems to have decided to follow.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) plans to start a Birth Defect Management Clinic at KEM Hospital to rectify anomalies in children immediately after birth. Many of these anomalies become serious problems later on as parents tend to waste precious time and decide to treat it once the child is slightly older.

The KEM Hospital administration will create a special team comprising a paediatrician, ophthalmic surgeon, cardiac surgeon and paediatric surgeon for this clinic. Apart from hospital doctors, the BMC health department will also appoint super-specialty doctors from outside on a contract basis.

A congenital disorder or disease is a condition existing at birth or one that develops during the first month of life (neonatal disease). Birth defect is a widely used term for a congenital malformation, ie a congenital, physical anomaly which is recognisable at birth and which is significant enough to be considered a problem.

There are several children who are born with defects like squint, cardiac problem and bone disorder among others.

Director of medical education, BMC, Dr Suhasini Nagda said, "Chances of a child with an anomaly leading a normal life are higher if the problem is detected early and treated on time. But either there is lack of awareness among parents or they don't get proper advice about the disease and treatment. That's why we have decided to open a dedicated clinic at KEM Hospital, where doctors will only work on cases of birth defects. We have already started a special outpatient department for such cases. Parents can get the right advice under one roof."

"For now, we plan to open this clinic only at KEM Hospital, but, in the future, we will extend the service in Sion and Nair hospitals as well. This will be a first-of-a-kind clinic in a BMC-run hospital."