The most prestigious award in the field of paediatric surgery has been presented to a leading Irish surgeon.
Prof Barry O'Donnell, professor emeritus of paediatric surgery at University College Dublin and former consultant paediatric surgeon at the Children's Research Centre, Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, received the Urology Medal of the American Academy of Paediatrics at its annual meeting in New Orleans.
The award was principally made in recognition of Prof O'Donnell's discovery of a revolutionary new treatment for a common bladder problem in children. Along with Prof Prem Puri, he developed a solution to the problem of "back-flow" of urine from a child's bladder to the kidneys. The back- flow, referred to as vesico-ureteric reflux, occurs in about 1 in a 100 children and has the potential to cause permanent kidney damage. Prior to the introduction of the new STING procedure children were faced with an open bladder operation involving a six-day hospital stay. The new procedure, involving the injection of a teflon paste, takes 10 to 15 minutes and is performed as a day case. The acronym STING stands for subureteric teflon injection.
Prof O'Donnell said he hoped it would send out the message that world-class research can be carried out in the Republic.