**6.3 Myelomeningocele**

If the infant is not affected by other serious anomalies or malformations, most cases with myelomeningocele or myelocele survive with a wide range of neurological impairments. The level of the defect is a determining factor of the clinical characteristics. In levels below the spinal lesion, patients may face a variety of motor and sensory deficits, including bladder incontinence or sexual dysfunction [50]. Most of these lesions are managed by surgical intervention, followed by rehabilitation.

#### **6.4 Encephalocele**

Content and location of the herniated mass is a predictive marker of prognosis and clinical manifestations. "The more rostral the site, the better the prognosis" [50]. Epilepsy, sensorial or motor neuron dysfunction, or various degrees of developmental deficiencies may occur in cases due to mechanical effects of traction and distortion on the brain stem [51]. Some patients may take benefits from surgical intervention.

**113**

*Common Congenital Neural Tube Anomalies: Epidemiology, Classification, Management…*

Patients usually have a normal neurological examination with no evident sphincter dysfunction or deformity of the lower extremities. A simple surgical cor-

Children with spina bifida have a higher first-year mortality rate in comparison with the general population [14]. Researchers have shown that children with Spina Bifida have increased sedentary behaviors and lower physical activity levels than their healthy counterparts [52]. This increases the risk of various comorbidities such as diabetes, obesity, thrombosis, etc. Most commonly, this malformation is diagnosed later in life as it has no evident neurological manifestations and disabilities. The neurological symptoms may occur when the spinal cord faces damage or traction. In symptomatic patients, neurosurgical intervention is the main therapeu-

An extensive review of the literature shows a dearth of epidemiologic and etiologic studies. More original studies and meta-analyses are needed to understand the genetic and environmental risk factors of NTDs. Although most of the established surgical interventions have positive effects, prevention remains the best strategy in

1 Functional Neurosurgery Research Center, Shohada Tajrish Comprehensive Neurosurgical Center of Excellence, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical

2 Department of Research, Arka Education and Clinical Research Consultants,

3 Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Baqiyatallah University of Medical

© 2021 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,

\*

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.97182*

rection is the main treatment method.

**6.6 Spina Bifida Occulta**

**6.5 Meningocele**

tic method.

**7. Future direction**

the management of NTDs.

Mohammad Hossein Khosravi1,2 and Bita Najafian3

\*Address all correspondence to: dr.najafian@yahoo.com

provided the original work is properly cited.

**Author details**

Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Tehran, Iran

*Common Congenital Neural Tube Anomalies: Epidemiology, Classification, Management… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.97182*
