What is cloacal exstrophy?

Also known as: EC.

Cloacal exstrophy is a serious birth defect in which the pelvic organs do not form properly. It is a very rare problem, occurring is every 300,000 live births. The colon, bladder and genital organs do not separate during development in the uterus. At birth, they remain fused and are open to the outside of the body, exposed on the lower abdominal wall. In addition, the pelvic bones and muscles do not form completely in front of the baby as they should.

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Reviewed by: Juan L Calisto, MD

This page was last updated on: 1/29/2019 3:21:13 PM