CONTACT: Toni Baker, 706-721-4421 Office, 706-825-6473 Cell, tbaker@augusta.edu

AUGUSTA, Ga. (March 20, 2020) – The Georgia Esoteric and Molecular Laboratory at the Medical College of Georgia Department of Pathology has developed a novel, accurate coronavirus test that can tell patients if they are infected within about two hours instead of waiting typically days to hear from remote testing facilities.

“We want patients and physicians in our community to have timely access to information that will ultimately benefit us all by helping limit spread of the virus,” says Dr. Ravindra Kolhe, director of the GEM Lab, chief of the Section of Molecular and Genetic Pathology and vice chair for translational research in the MCG Department of Pathology at Augusta University.

“More rapid identification of individuals who are infected will help ensure they get help as needed and that the risk of exposure to others is significantly reduced,” Kolhe says of the test rapidly developed by the GEM Lab team over recent days.

“We completed our COVID-19 assay validation on Sunday and immediately submitted the documentation to the FDA for their approval.  This was a nonstop 90-hour effort by the phenomenal team in the GEM lab to develop this test, but we all felt a commitment to our community to make this test available here,” Kolhe says. While Food and Drug Administration approval is pending for the new test, the FDA released new guidance this week that its approval is no longer required for COVID-19 testing in a CLIA-certified laboratory like the GEM Lab. CLIA is a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services certification.

“As we have all seen in the news, identifying individuals infected with this virus within a few hours and initiating the quarantine protocol can have a huge impact on infection spread and potentially patient outcomes,” says Kolhe. “We are now running tests around the clock.”

The GEM Lab team includes Dr. Ashis Mondal, lab supervisor; Kimya Jones, lab manager; research associates Sudha Ananth and Yasmeen Jilani; postdocs Drs. Pankaj Ahluwalia, Nikhil Sahajpal and Meenakshi Ahluwalia; and molecular pathology fellow Dr. Allan Njau.

While the priority is providing quick, accurate results to local residents, Kolhe says his lab also would like to test samples from outside the immediate area when requested, but those details are still being worked out. At the moment, the test is for patients whose samples are taken at the AU Health System.

To quickly meet demand, the GEM Lab team is now working around the clock to increase their testing capacity, which started at 72 tests in a 24-hour period and which they want to expand to 500 in coming weeks.  The MCG GEM Lab also will work with other CLIA-certified labs interested in offering their new test.

Their new test, which works on the Luminex ARIES laboratory platform, is based on modified testing recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Kolhe says, and focuses on two unique genetic markers for the virulent virus.

“For testing, we are looking at a conserved region that is unique for coronavirus 2019, has not been changed in this virus and is fundamental to its survival” says Kolhe of the two genetic markers, N1 and N3. Genetic markers are DNA sequences that are distinctive points of variation that can be used to identify a human or a disease.

The MCG lab’s own AI-driven genetic analysis, called in silico testing, also showed that N1 and N3 were distinctive for coronavirus 2019, and now the GEM team is looking for additional markers that also might qualify as unique to this virus.

“Everybody is looking at these targets and everybody has a different way of looking at them,” Kolhe says. “The biggest game changer in this is the turnaround time for patients because we are able to provide the test locally.” The test also indicates the viral load present, and higher loads increase that person’s chance of infecting others.

“We want to identify patients with a high viral load and who can spread the virus rapidly. We want to prevent #patient31 in Augusta,” Kolhe says, referencing a woman in South Korea who is believed to have significantly increased the virus’ spread there by coming in contact with many others in large crowds, including two large church services and dining at a buffet, before being tested.  She had been in a minor car wreck a few days before which brought her to a hospital but she was not tested there for the coronavirus.

Until now, a patient sample from the Augusta area would be taken, put on a plane to a reference lab, where it may take three to four hours to process, he says, but the real issue is proximity and travel time to that lab.

For the first real-time test run this past weekend, the GEM Lab team began analyzing the sample at 10 p.m. and was reporting the status shortly after 2 a.m. to physicians at AU Health System. These first tests ultimately confirmed the first cases of infection reported in the Augusta area.

While the coronavirus test is in serious short supply because of rapidly escalating and unexpected demand, the individual components needed to make a test are not yet as in demand, so the GEM Lab team’s work included  finding needed parts like the extraction cassettes they put the patient sample in.

“The GEM Lab team has worked 24/7 to complete validation and implementation in absolutely record time,” says Dr. Amyn Rojiani, chair of the MCG Department of Pathology. “Kudos to the entire team for their uncompromising dedication and expertise that has now made this test directly available for the first time to the Augusta community,”

The coronavirus has been around for at least 40 years but we are hearing and worrying so much about it now because there are changes in the virus’ structure that have made it more virulent and contagious, Kolhe says.

Coronaviruses are a large group of viruses that cause disease in animals and humans, according to the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases. Human coronaviruses were first identified in the 1960s and the novel COVID-19 surfaced in China in 2019. Most people get infected with one of the common human strains at some point in their lives. Symptoms of COVID-19 infection may occur two to 14 days after exposure and include fever, cough, difficulty breathing and shortness of breath.

DOWNLOADS: A high-resolution photo of the GEM Lab team.

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Augusta University is Georgia’s innovation center for education and health care, training the next generation of innovators, leaders and healthcare providers in classrooms and clinics on four campuses in Augusta and locations across the state. More than 9,000 students choose Augusta for educational opportunities at the center of Georgia’s new cybersecurity hub, and experiential learning that blends arts and application, humanities and the health sciences. Augusta is home to Georgia’s only public academic health center, where groundbreaking research is creating a healthier, more prosperous Georgia and world-class clinicians are bringing the medicine of tomorrow to patient care today.

augusta.edu   augustahealth.org

CONTACT: Danielle Harris, 706-522-3023, deharris1@augusta.edu

AUGUSTA, Ga. (March 17, 2020) — As the number of cases of COVID-19 rise throughout Georgia, Augusta University Health is offering drive-through testing atChristenberry Fieldhouse, 3109 Wrightsboro Road, for pre-selected patients.

Beginning Wednesday, March 18, the drive-through clinic will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is only available for patients who receive a positive screening through the free AU Health COVID-19 Virtual Screening application at www.augustahealth.org/COVID19. These individuals will receive an appointment before coming on site.

Individuals who show up without an appointment will be redirected to the free virtual care pre-screening application.

“The COVID-19 outbreak is evolving daily and AU Health is proud to offer drive-through testing to the community during these uncertain times,” said Katrina Keefer, chief executive officer for Augusta University Health System and executive vice president for health affairs at Augusta University. “One of AU Health’s first presumptive casesresulted from utilizing the drive-through testing concept. It is a priority for us to provide greater access for those who may need testing the most without exposing others.”

To limit virus exposure and risk, anyone experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, such as fever, cough and shortness of breath, are encouraged to use the virtual careapplication or to call the health system’s hotline at 706-721-1852 before visiting the emergency room, urgent care or doctor’s office.

Drive-thru testing has been successful in many areas of the country as hospitals work to increase testing capability and limit exposure. AU Health has already had over 240 calls to the COVID-19 hotline and seen about 200 virtual visits through its virtual screening application, with an average visit time of 10 minutes or less.  AU Health expects to be able to rapidly expand testing as part of its new drive-through testing location.

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AU Health is Georgia’s only public academic health center, where world-class clinicians are bringing the medicine of tomorrow to patient care today. As the primary teaching affiliate of the Medical College of Georgia, AU Health provides the most comprehensive routine-to-complex care at AU Medical Center, which houses the region’s only Level 1 trauma center, as well as Children’s Hospital of Georgia, historic Roosevelt warm Springs Rehabilitation and Specialty Hospitals, Georgia War Veterans Nursing Home, and more than 100 primary and specialty care clinics across the state.
augusta.edu   augustahealth.org

Only select entrances will be open for patients and visitors at each Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) hospital starting the afternoon of Sunday, March 15. Each patient and visitor will be screened for COVID-19 as they enter. You can see a complete list of open entrances, updated visitation limitations and other helpful information at www.nghs.com/covid-19.

            “These simple screening questions will help us protect all of our patients, visitors and employees as we try to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our communities,” said Supriya Mannepalli, MD, chair of the Infection Prevention & Control Committee for NGMC. “If a visitor is suspected for COVID-19, we will provide them with next steps to follow for testing.”

Physicians and hospital leadership are reviewing scheduled, elective surgeries. Hospital staff will contact patients if a surgery is canceled. If you have concerns about your scheduled surgery, please contact your physician’s office.

Cafeterias at all NGMC hospitals will continue to serve food, but all dining areas are closed until further notice. That means patients, visitors and employees may purchase food to take back to waiting areas, patient rooms, break rooms, etc.

            “These decisions are being made with safety in mind,” says Carol Burrell, president & CEO of NGHS. “Our top priority is always the safety of our patients, visitors, employees, physicians and others who rely on and support NGHS.”

Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) was notified today of two confirmed positive tests for COVID-19. Both patients are currently being treated at NGMC Braselton.

“Our physicians, nurses and other staff are following all guidelines from the CDC to provide the best possible care,” says Anthony Williamson, president of NGMC Braselton. “That includes keeping the patients in negative pressure rooms, wearing personal protective equipment and following all recommended cleaning procedures to help keep patients and all others in the hospital safe. People in our community should continue coming to NGMC Braselton for care as they need it.”

If you have a fever and cough or difficulty breathing, these steps will help you find the care you need and limit the spread of COVID-19 in our region:

Call before you come

• Please call your doctor’s office or an urgent care clinic for advice about where you should go for treatment.
• If you already have an appointment scheduled and have recently traveled to an area affected by Coronavirus, please call the office before you leave your house.

Call 9-1-1 for emergencies

• Calling 9-1-1 is always the fastest and most efficient way to get proper treatment for medical emergencies.

Consider staying home and completing an E-Visit

• We have updated our online E-Visits to ask screening questions that may indicate if you have Coronavirus.
• Just visit ngpg.org/evisit-infofor instructions about how to complete an E-Visit from the comfort of your home.

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ABOUT NORTHEAST GEORGIA HEALTH SYSTEM

Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) is a non-profit on a mission of improving the health of our community in all we do. Our team cares for more than 1 million people across the region through four hospitals and a variety of outpatient locations. Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) has campuses in Gainesville, Braselton, Winder and Dahlonega – with a total of more than 700 beds and more than 1,100 medical staff members representing more than 50 specialties. Learn more at www.nghs.com.

Breastfeeding has been proven to be the best source of nutrition for babies to grow and stay healthy. It also benefits mothers by lowering their risk of breast and ovarian cancer, diabetes, heart disease and osteoporosis.

Committed to being a resource to mothers who choose to breastfeed, as well as helping health care professionals and the community understand the importance of breastfeeding, Southeast Georgia Health System will host a Breastfeeding Conference on Friday, April 24, 2020, 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., in the Linda S. Pinson Conference Center on the Brunswick Campus, 2415 Parkwood Drive. The conference is open to health care professionals; birth, parenting and lactation specialists; and interested community members. Continuing education credits are available to those who qualify.

Misunderstanding a baby’s normal behavior is one reason that mothers add formula, begin solids prematurely, or give up breastfeeding altogether. Guest speaker Jan Tedder, BSN, FNP, IBCLC, will present developmental changes that are often misinterpreted as breastfeeding problems and offer resources to help families manage these changes. She will also discuss hospital discharge readiness, the critical impact of “responsive parenting,” innovative strategies for effective parent teaching, and share intriguing case studies, inspiring video clips, and interactive exercises.

Tedder has worked with families for decades. A published author, Tedder was inducted into Sigma Theta Tau, a national nursing honor society, and honored as the North Carolina Maternal Child Health Nurse of the Year. She created the award-winning HUG Your Baby program, which has been shared with 12,000 professionals and thousands of parents in 20 countries around the world. In addition to teaching birth, parenting and lactation specialists, Jan provides home-based lactation services in Durham, North Carolina.

The registration fee for the all-day breastfeeding conference is $90 (plus a convenience fee for online registration); an early bird 10% discount is offered to those registering by March 24, 2020 ($81). The registration fee includes conference materials, refreshments, lunch and continuing education credits. Southeast Georgia Health System team members may attend at no charge.

For more information regarding this event, contact Kim Buckley, R.N., BSN at kbuckley@sghs.org or call 912-466-4171. Online registration is available at sghs.org/breastfeeding.

About Southeast Georgia Health System
Southeast Georgia Health System is a not-for-profit health system comprised of two acute care hospitals, two long term care facilities, three immediate care centers, multiple outpatient specialty care centers, and numerous employed physician practices. The Health System has the only CyberKnife^® M6 with MLC technology in Georgia, and a Cancer Care Center accredited by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer. The Health System is part of Coastal Community Health, a regional affiliation between Baptist Health and Southeast Georgia Health System forming a highly integrated hospital network focused on significant initiatives designed to enhance the quality and value of care provided to our contiguous communities. For more information, call 855-ASK-SGHS (855-275-7447) or visit sghs.org.

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A free class on childbirth is offered at Wayne Memorial Hospital Saturday, March  7th from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the hospital cafeteria conference room. This class is ideal for those expectant mothers 25 weeks pregnant or later by the class date. Those interested in registering may do so by calling (912) 530-3118 or (912) 530-3117.

Topics of the class will include the normal process of pregnancy, labor and delivery with an emphasis on conscious prepared childbirth. Stress is placed on a medically safe delivery in the hospital under the direction of a physician. Additional topics covered are infant care and infant feeding. Attendees are encouraged to invite a support person to the class.

Wayne Memorial Hospital, whose mission is to provide high quality health care services to all patients, built a state-of-the-art facility in 2007. It is the third largest employer in Wayne County with 500 employees, 84 beds and is a three-time winner of the Georgia Alliance of Community Hospitals Small Hospital of the Year Award.

Hamilton Health Care System’s Anna Shaw Children’s Institute (ASCI) has helped more than 400 children with developmental delays and their families since opening last April. There have been approximately 3,800 patient visits.

“We have had an amazing beginning,” said Terri Woodruff, executive director.

Most of the patients are Georgia residents, however some patients have come from Tennessee and Florida.

Dedicated to the memory of longtime Whitfield County resident Anna Sue Shaw, the Institute is a regional leader of and advocate for the care of children who are experiencing the challenges of autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, ADHD/ADD, down syndrome, spina bifida, Apert syndrome, cri du chat syndrome, Lennox Gastaut syndrome, hydrocephalus, spinal cord injury, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy or developmental delays.

“There is a high volume of children with complex conditions in our area who need services,” said Woodruff. “We are getting to know the needs of the children and families in our community and beyond, and we’re so excited to be able to partner with parents and caregivers to provide state-of-the-art, evidence-based care for their children.”

Providers who specialize in the care of children include: a psychologist, developmental behavioral pediatricians, neurodevelopmental pediatrician, social worker, speech-language pathologists, physical therapists, behavior analysts, music therapist, occupational therapists, care navigator and others.

“Our team is phenomenal,” said Woodruff. “Everyone has a passion for children. The coordination of all care services under one roof has benefited the providers, the children and the families.  Collaboration among all caregivers has streamlined services and been such a convenience for families.”

ASCI has initiated free programs since opening, including Arts in the Treetops (music events designed to introduce people to music therapy), Classes to Help, Advise & Motivate Parents (CHAMP, educational classes on the first Tuesday of the month), parent support group (second Tuesday of the month) and Reading around the Tree (story time for children).

With design elements inspired by the style of a tree house, the Anna Shaw Children’s Institute was designed to be considerate of children’s differing abilities to tolerate light, sound and texture.  The Institute provides a unique environment with the overall goal to blend calming color and fun play for children of all abilities.

The room designs include forest animals, birds or butterflies. Each of the rooms has dimmable lights.  Some unique areas for care include the Swan Room, an aquatic therapy room for children with a swim tank. The Oriole room is used for occupational therapy. Feeding therapy can take place in the Finch or Falcon rooms in a booth that mimics dining out.  Children can participate in speech therapy in the Sparrow or the Seagull rooms. To emphasize the woodland theme, local artists have painted or designed an artistic piece for each room, featuring the animal assigned to the specific room.

Children can receive physical or occupational therapy in the Tree House Gym, a large 2,900-square-foot gym with colorful patterns on the floor, an adaptive climbing wall, an indoor slide and a fun track in the middle of the room. During pleasant weather, therapy can be enjoyed outside in the Treehouse Terrace, an outdoor therapy area with a roller slide, a spinning chair, adaptive pull up bars, a sensory wave and a fun set of tympani drums.

A unique gift shop, Treetop Treasures, features sensory friendly toys, weighted blankets, puzzles, books and other items specifically for children receiving care at the Institute.

The Children’s Institute plans to expand support as it grows.

“We want to provide a focus on what children can do rather than their limitations,” said Woodruff. “We plan to create a literacy rich environment by giving children books and promoting reading to children, support families so they can meet their child’s needs, advocate for families with insurance companies, medical equipment companies and community resources, and continue to provide free classes for families to advance their understanding of caring for their child.”

A large number of families are impacted by developmental delays in this area.  Currently Whitfield, Murray, Gordon and Catoosa counties, there are 27,500 plus children who are diagnosed with a developmental disability. According to the CDC, one in 59 children in the United States are impacted by autism.

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St. Mary’s Family Birth Center is part of a statewide collaborative that is working to improve Georgia’s maternal death rate, currently ranked as one of the worst in the United States.

“The safety of mothers is vitally important to us,” said Jackie Iley, director of St. Mary’s Family Birth Center. “Our birth center is an extremely safe place to have your baby, but as good as we are, we know we can always improve. We want to do everything possible to remain in the forefront for maternal and baby safety. Every mother who delivers here deserves the best evidence-based care available.”

According to the World Health Organization, almost 850 women worldwide die every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. Some 99 percent of those deaths happen in developing nations, but the U.S. is not the safest place in the world to have a baby and is the only industrialized nation with a rising maternal mortality rate.

Georgia’s 2019 maternal mortality rate ranked No. 43 in the nation with 7.4 deaths per 1,000 births, according to America’s Health Rankings (www.americashealthrankings.org). By comparison, the highest-ranked state, Massachusetts, reported 3.8 maternal deaths per 1,000 births. The lowest-ranked state, Mississippi, reported 8.6 maternal deaths per 1,000 births, and the U.S. average was 5.8.

“Georgia is making progress, and we are proud to be part of the solution,” said Tabby Bonner, St. Mary’s perinatal clinical educator. “That’s why we’re taking action to stay in the forefront of safety and working to help our state improve those statistics.”

Since 2017, St. Mary’s Family Birth Center has partnered with the Georgia Perinatal Quality Collaborative (GaPQC). The collaborative focuses on developing evidence-based practices to improve health outcomes for mothers and babies across the state.

“The collaborative is part of a national, data-driven quality improvement joint effort with the Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health,” Bonner said. “Together, they provide free maternal patient safety bundles for hospitals to use to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality.”

Education in progress

St. Mary’s Family Birth Center already has completed two educational bundles and is working on a third. The first bundle focused on obstetrical hemorrhage – excessive bleeding after birth, which is the leading cause of maternal death in Georgia. The second bundle focused on acute hypertensive emergencies, which is when the mother’s blood pressure becomes dangerously high, a symptom of conditions that can lead to seizures, strokes or other life-threatening emergencies. The bundle now in progress teaches ways to reduce primary cesarean sections.

“These bundles focus heavily on unit readiness, recognition of the problem, prevention, and rapid and proper response,” Bonner said. “They are incredibly well researched and very thorough. Plus, they feature a hands-on style of learning, including staff drills, that is practical and effective.

“In addition to intensive staff training, we also use two OB hemorrhage carts paid for by donations to St. Mary’s Foundation,” Bonner noted. “The carts are fully stocked and ready at all times if a mom is having a serious problem with bleeding.”

Completing drills gives nurses and medical staff an opportunity to learn best practices, fine-tune skills and enhance communication in a low-pressure environment, Bonner said. “This way, when a true emergency arises, our staff and physicians know how to respond to changing situations and are confident in their plan to safely take care of patients.”

Hands-on learning

Recently, for example, Family Birth Center nurses drilled with Athens obstetrician and gynecologist Kaushik Shah, MD, on shoulder dystocia. Shoulder dystocia is when the baby’s shoulder becomes stuck against the mother’s pubic bone, preventing the baby from moving through the birth canal.

Using St. Mary’s sophisticated Noelle birthing mannequin, the team ran the drill once to review techniques and procedures. They then reviewed their performance and ran the drill a second time.

“It’s very helpful to the nurses,” said Bonner, who helped Dr. Shah coach the staff during the training session. “They get to learn not only what to do but why we do it. They also get to practice new skills in a safe, relaxed environment dedicated entirely to learning.”

Next up will be a bundle focusing on venous thromboembolism, in which a blood clot forms deep in a vein and then moves to the lungs.

For more information about the national effort to reduce maternal mortality, visit the Council on Patient Safety in Women’s Health Care at www.safehealthcareforeverywoman.org. For more information about St. Mary’s Family Birth Center, visit www.stmarysathens.org.

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On December 6, 2019, Southeast Georgia Health System became the only hospital between Savannah and Jacksonville to offer heart patients the world’s smallest pacemaker. Assisted by the Health System’s Heart Catheter team, cardiologist Mark T. Watkins, M.D., FACC, successfully implanted the new device in two patients. The minimally invasive procedures each took less than 20 minutes.

Both patients suffer from bradycardia, a condition causing low or irregular heart rhythms. Bradycardia can create dizziness, fatigue, shortness of breath or fainting spells, especially during physical activity. The pacemaker’s electrical impulses or “pacing therapy” relieves these symptoms by restoring the heart’s normal rhythm.

The new pacemaker, known as the Micra® Transcatheter Pacing System (PTS) is unique for several reasons. About the size of a large vitamin, it is one-tenth the size of a traditional pacemaker. Weighing little more than a penny, the Micra does not require cardiac wires (leads) or a surgical “pocket” under the skin to deliver electrical impulses. The device automatically adjusts pacing therapy based on each patient’s activity levels.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the Micra pacemaker in 2016. It is also approved for Medicare reimbursement.

Watkins and cardiologist Mitchell T. Jones, M.D., Southeast Georgia Health System Brunswick Campus medical staff members, received specialized training in device implantation and use.

“The Micra pacemaker is a milestone for our heart patients who now have access to this technology close to home. I’m pleased that we can improve heart function and quality of life for bradycardia patients in a way that’s unobtrusive and offers lower risk than what was available with a traditional pacemaker,” says Watkins.

According to Lance Simpson, a senior clinical specialist with Medtronic, Micra’s manufacturer, this is currently the only leadless pacemaker available. Simpson feels the technology offers important advantages over regular pacemakers. “First, the patients have no visible or physical reminders of the pacemaker. More importantly, the implant success rate with Micra is nearly 100 percent. And patients implanted with this device experience 63 percent fewer complications than they would with a traditional pacemaker.”

The tiny device is implanted into the patient’s heart through a catheter inserted into the femoral vein. “There are fewer potential complications with this device because it does not use lead wires,” Watkins says, adding, “It is a permanent pacemaker, but should it need removal or replacement, it can be permanently shut down and a new device implanted without any risk of electrical interference.”

Patients implanted with the Micra may safely undergo full-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and TSA airport screenings.

From his perspective as a cardiologist, Watkins is especially enthusiastic about the device’s ability to track heart health. “The device sends data to the Medtronic CareLink Network, which allows me to follow the patient’s condition via remote monitoring. Patients only need a ‘device check’ once a year in my office.”

To schedule a consultation with Watkins, call 912-264-0760. To schedule a consultation with Jones, call 912-264-1520.

About Southeast Georgia Health System

Southeast Georgia Health System is a not-for-profit health system comprised of two acute care hospitals, two long term care facilities, three immediate care centers, five family medicine centers and numerous employed physician practices. The Health System has multiple outpatient specialty care centers, including the only CyberKnife^® M6 with MLC technology program in Georgia, and a Cancer Care Center accredited by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer. For more information, call 855-ASK-SGHS (855-275-7447) or visit sghs.org.

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Mariha Spencer of Warner Robins, Ga. was approximately six months pregnant with her first child, Amillia, when she learned her daughter had a rare congenital defect, known as esophageal atresia, which is characterized by an improper or absent connection between the esophagus and stomach that makes feeding impossible. The abnormality makes it impossible for the affected child to eat, and often requires a series of corrective surgeries to be performed soon after the birth of the child.

Trusting Amillia’s care to the physicians and staff at Beverly Knight Olson Children’s Hospital, Navicent Health (BKO), Spencer had no idea her daughter would become one of just 26 infants globally, and the first in Georgia, to undergo an innovative new procedure designed to repair the abnormality.

“With esophageal atresia, the esophagus doesn’t develop or connect to the stomach correctly. The baby ends up having an upper pouch that connects to the mouth, and a lower pouch that connects to the stomach and possibly the airway, with nothing in between. This makes it impossible for the baby to eat. Amillia’s case was especially rare, because there was a connection from the upper pouch to her airway, so if she ate, food would go straight into her lungs,” said Josh Glenn, MD, pediatric surgeon with BKO.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), esophageal atresia affects approximately 1 in 4,100 infants in the U.S. Baby Amillia’s rare form of this rare condition required quick intervention and innovation. 

“The distance between the two pouches was too great to pull the two ends together. Normally, we would take a piece of the large intestine to connect the two. This method comes with a lot of complications and risk,” said Dr. Glenn. “Amillia was a very complicated case because of the added challenge of separating the esophagus and airway, so we chose to try a recently developed, minimally invasive procedure that we thought would work well for her.”

The new approach, which uses magnets to close the gap between the two pouches for the treatment of esophageal atresia, received a Humanitarian Use Device (HUD) designation from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2018 and was reviewed through the Humanitarian Device Exemption (HDE) pathway. Dr. Glenn and his team worked with Navicent Health’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) to gain access through a humanitarian exemption and received permission to perform this rare procedure at BKO.

With a feeding tube already in place in her stomach from a previous procedure, the repair of Amillia’s esophagus required separate, staged procedures. First, Dr. Glenn and his team separated the upper pouch of Amillia’s esophagus from her trachea.  Once the incision healed, Dr. Glenn and his team then used the Flourish Esophageal Atresia Device from Cook Medical to place two special magnets in the upper and lower pouches of her esophagus.

The magnets pulled together inside Amillia’s tiny body closed a gap of approximately four centimeters, connecting the two ends of her esophagus to make it whole. Once both ends of the esophagus were connected, the magnets were removed.

“We were all for it, and we were excited that it was not very invasive. They inserted the magnets, and after two weeks, they pulled them out. Everything grew back together. It was an amazing feeling, and we were so grateful that we could stay in Macon, right here so close to home,” said Mariha Spencer, baby Amillia’s mother.

In an interview with Macon CBS affiliate WMAZ-TV, Amillia’s father Austin Spencer said, “It’s so simple. It’s truly awesome, just using magnets.”

Now, at six months of age, Amillia is doing well and has been discharged from BKO’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. She is home with her family learning how to eat on her own, and she continues to visit BKO on an outpatient basis as teams work to strengthen and shape her esophagus.

“The surgical team at Beverly Knight Olson Children’s Hospital, Navicent Health is on the forefront of innovative care, providing the highest level of treatment for families. We applaud Dr. Glenn and our surgical team for their quick thinking, and for the extra steps to receive a humanitarian exemption from the FDA, to provide this infant the right care, at the right time, and in the right place  – close to home,” said Tom Oliver, MD, Chief Clinical Officer for Navicent Health.

Serving Georgia families since 1987, BKO opened a new state-of-the-art facility in Macon on February 25, 2019. The new hospital includes four pediatric operating rooms, designed specifically for patients with smaller bodies, and a 66-bed Level III NNICU that provides care for families from across the state. For more information on BKO, please visit www.childrenshospitalmacon.org. 

In the attached photo: Josh Glenn, MD, holds Amillia Spencer at Beverly Knight Olson Children’s Hospital, Navicent Health in Macon, Ga.

About Navicent Health
Navicent Health, the leading provider of healthcare in central and south Georgia, is committed to its mission of elevating health and wellbeing through compassionate care. Providing more than 1,000 beds and offering care in 53 specialties at more than 50 facilities throughout the region, Navicent Health provides care for healthcare consumers’ through an academic medical center; community, pediatric and rehabilitation hospitals; urgent care centers; physician practices; diagnostic centers; home health; hospice and palliative care; and a life plan community. Navicent Health is dedicated enhancing health and wellness for individuals throughout the region through nationally-recognized quality care, community health initiatives and collaborative partnerships. For more information, please visitwww.navicenthealth.org.

About Cook Medical
Since 1963, Cook Medical has worked closely with physicians to develop technologies that eliminate the need for open surgery. Today we are combining medical devices, biologic materials and cellular therapies to help the world’s healthcare systems deliver better outcomes more efficiently. We have always remained family owned so that we have the freedom to focus on what we care about: our patients, our employees, and our communities. Find out more at cookmedical.com, and for the latest news, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. 

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