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About 1 in 10,960 babies is born with omphalocele, an abdominal wall defect where the internal organs protrude into the umbilical cord.
DETECTION AND TREATMENT
Expanded AFP screening, a prenatal blood test, identifies about 85% of abdominal wall defects.
Newborns with abdominal wall defects need immediate surgery and intensive hospital care. At least half of babies with omphalocele have heart defects or other birth defects; only about 60% of infants survive to age 1.The average lifetime cost for medical treatment, educational services, and lost productivity for each case is $176,000.
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