GUWAHATI, April 19 - A rare �fetus-in-fetu� surgery was performed on a baby under atypical conditions at Excelcare Hospitals here recently.
A six-month-old male baby was referred by Dr Pranab Kumar Sarma, MD, to the Paediatric Department of the aforementioned hospital from Nalbari with suspected pneumonia and severe respiratory distress at night on April 7, 2018.
�The paediatric team headed by Dr Prakritish Bora, Dr Abid Ahmed and Dr CS Bhattacharyya examined the baby and found the chest X-Ray done outside to be suspicious. Hence, chest X-Ray was repeated, which revealed opacification of right hemithorax with some high-density structures and some resembling bones. On the basis of the X-Ray findings, a CT scan of the thorax was advised urgently for further evaluation and the unusual pattern was discussed with radiologist Dr Pranjal Goswami about the possibility of a rare condition and not a common pneumonia at midnight on April 8, 2018,� a statement from the hospital said.
On the April 9 morning, CT scan was evaluated and it revealed a huge mass in the right hemithorax extending to the mediastinum containing predominantly fat, soft tissues and bony structures, including limb bones and deformed rudimentary vertebral column. Dr Pranjal Goswami, assisted by consultant radiologists Dr Upasana Misra Baruah and Dr Sukanya Deuri Bharali, diagnosed the aforementioned condition to be fetus-in-fetu. The child�s condition was deteriorating fast and so surgical intervention was planned by the paediatric and paediatric surgery team.
�Subsequently, a surgery was performed on April 10, 2018 morning by a team of doctors comprising Dr Rajib Ray Baruah (paediatric surgeon), Dr Intekhab Alam (cardiothoracic surgeon) and Dr Bibhash Bhagawati (anaesthesiologist). A malformed fetus with umbilical cord, deformed head with hairs, trunk and limbs with fingers was removed,� the statement added.
The baby�s condition improved immediately after the surgery and during the postoperative period, he was fine and doing well under the care and observation of Dr Prakritish Bora. He was discharged on April 19, 2018.
Fetus-in-fetu is an extremely rare condition and only a very few cases have been reported around the world.
