This male fetus of a 21-year-old Rh-positive mother (Gravida 2 Para 1011) was the product of an induced delivery at 21 weeks gestation. At 19 weeks gestation, routine prenatal examination had revealed a maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level that was 4.2 times the mean for a mother at this point in gestation. A targeted ultrasound was ordered--which revealed a lumbosacral neural tube defect--and an amniocentesis was performed. Amniotic fluid showed an AFP level that was 5.3 times the calculated median value and cytogenetic analysis demonstrated a normal male (46XY) chromosome pattern. The parents requested termination of the pregnancy and a 465-gram male nondysmorphic stillborn fetus was delivered vaginally.

== Autopsy Findings == There At autopsy there was a myelomeningocele in the lumbar region that measured 1.6 cm in width and 3.7 cm in length.

* [{{SERVER}}/library/index.php?/tags/2173-myelomeningocele PEIR Digital Library: Myelomeningocele Images] == Related IPLab Cases ==* [http://library.med.utah.edu/WebPath/PEDHTML/PEDIDX.html WebPath: Pediatric-Perinatal Pathology]