PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — This week in 12 Health, Shannon Hegy spoke with the CEO of Smoltap, a company that makes a "positioning stabilizer" for infant spinal taps. Spinal tap procedures are used to test the spinal fluid in instances where meningitis is suspected.

Shannon's son, Carter, contracted E. Coli meningitis eight years ago at just two months old, so she knows how traumatic these procedures can be for patients and their families alike.

Normally, a nurse holds the baby on its side in a "C" position to expose the vertebrae, while the doctor works to insert a large needle between the L3 and L4. The creators of Smoltap claim 38% of spinal taps are unsuccessful.

"It is incredibly stressful for everyone involved," Cooper said. "For the baby, for the nurse, for the doctor, the parents

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