Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooSpina Bifida

Spina bifida happens when a baby's spine and spinal cord do not fully develop in the womb (NHS, 2025). The bones of the spine do not form properly around the spinal cord. It can affect how the skin on the baby's back looks. In severe cases, it causes problems walking or doing daily activities without help.

The mildest form, spina bifida occulta, is the most common (NINDS, 2026). You can't see the gap in the spine, so many people never know they have it until they have a back X-ray for a different reason. It usually doesn't cause problems or need treatment (NHS, 2025).

Open forms of spina bifida are less common but usually more serious (NHS, 2025). In a meningocele, a sac of spinal fluid and the protective membranes around the spinal cord push out through a gap in the spine, causing a bulge under the skin (NINDS, 2026). Myelomeningocele is the most severe form: part of the spinal cord and spinal nerves push out through the spine, forming a pouch on the back (NINDS, 2026; MedlinePlus, 2025). Babies with open spina bifida often have a build-up of fluid on the brain (hydrocephalus) (NHS, 2025).

Spina Bifida Anatomy

The spine is made up of small bones called vertebrae, stacked one on top of the other, along with ligaments, nerves, muscles and discs. The vertebrae form a canal that protects the spinal cord, a long bundle of nerves that connects your brain to the rest of your body (NHS, 2025). The spine has sections that create natural curves in your back: the neck (cervical), the chest area (thoracic) and the lower back (lumbar). Spinal nerves branch out from the spinal cord through openings between the vertebrae to carry messages between the brain and the body.

Prevention

Not getting enough folic acid or vitamin B12 during pregnancy increases the chance of a baby being born with spina bifida (NHS, 2025). If you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, ask your family doctor or nurse practitioner, midwife or pharmacist about folic acid. (This medicine information comes from the NHS, not from me. Always check with a pharmacist or your family doctor or nurse practitioner before taking any medicine.)

How Spina Bifida is Treated

Tips

• Talk to your health care provider about early treatment. Many children work with physical and occupational therapists from early on, and the therapists teach parents activities and exercises to do with their little one (NINDS, 2026; NHS, 2025). I can also show you gentle stretches to do with your little one at home.
• If your little one has no feeling in their legs, they may not feel pain, heat or cold and can be injured without knowing (NHS, 2025). Check their skin regularly for bruises, cuts and sores.
• Make sure to attend all of your doctor visits; follow-up is lifelong (MedlinePlus, 2025).
• Help your little one to stay active and eat healthy foods.
• Charities such as Shine offer information and support for people affected by spina bifida and hydrocephalus (NHS, 2025).

Spina bifida care is lifelong and led by a specialist team. I don't treat the spine itself; I help with what often comes with it: tight or tired muscles, stiff joints, aches from using a wheelchair, crutches or braces, and the strain of moving differently. I work alongside your care team, and after any surgery, such as closing the back or placing a shunt, I need your surgeon's okay before hands-on treatment.

I ask about your care team's plan, allergies (including latex) and what you've been cleared for, then assess posture, joint movement, strength and where feeling is reduced.

Hands-On Care

• Gentle work for tight or overworked muscles, especially shoulders, arms and back working hard with crutches or a wheelchair
• Slow, gentle stretching to help keep joints moving, never forced
• Lighter pressure and only mild warm or cool applications where feeling is reduced, keeping pressure off a shunt and avoiding sores, rashes and fragile skin
• Gentle lymphatic drainage if the legs swell

Movement and Home Care

1. NHS (2025) Spina bifida. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/spina-bifida/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
2. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (2026) Spina bifida. Available at: https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/spina-bifida (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
3. MedlinePlus (2025) Myelomeningocele. Medical Encyclopedia. Available at: https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001558.htm (Accessed: 7 October 2026).