Karnataka Hospital Doctors Successfully Remove Fetus From Newborn's Abdomen

Hubballi: In a rare surgery, doctors at the Karnataka Medical College and Research Institute (KMCRI) have successfully removed a fetus from a 14-day-old child's abdomen in Karnataka's Hubballi district.

A woman from Kundgol taluk of Dharwad district had delivered a baby boy on September 23 at the KMCRI's maternal and child department. During examination, the surgeon discovered that the newborn was carrying a fetus inside his body, an extremely rare condition called 'fetus in fetu'. Ultrasound showed that the fetus had a spinal cord, intestines, arms and legs and skin but no brain and heart.

Later, an MRI confirmed the presence of a fetus. After obtaining the consent of the surgeons, a 45-minute surgery was performed at the paediatric surgery department on Tuesday under the leadership of PMSS Medical Superintendent Dr Rajashekar S and the fetus was successfully removed from the newborn.

KMCRI Medical Superintendent Dr Eshwar Hasabi told ETV Bharat, "A fetus was found in the abdomen of a baby boy born to a woman from Kundagol on September 23. Doctors conducted another examination on Monday. PMSS Medical Superintendent and paediatric surgeon Dr Rajashekar performed the surgery on October 7 and successfully removed the fetus."

Both the newborn and the mother are in stable health condition, Hasabi said adding, if the fetus had been left inside the body, the child would have suffered complications like intestinal gangrene in the future.

Paediatric surgeon Dr Rajashekar S said, "This was the woman's second child. Prior to delivery, the woman was detected with 'fetus in fetu'. She had a normal delivery and an MRI confirmed the presence of the fetus," he explained.

Dr Rajashekar explained that first a laparoscopy was performed to confirm the exact location of the fetus in the baby's body and an open surgery was performed. "A 4-5 cm incision was made and the entire surgery took around 45 minutes to be completed. The fetus was successfully removed and has been handed over to the pathology department of the medical college. It will be preserved for the study of medical students", he added.

The surgery was performed along with Dr Hassanees, Dr Chethan, and Dr Sharan, Dr Rajashekar said. "Both the mother and child are stable and will be discharged," he added.

The 'fetus in fetu' is considered to be one of the rarest medical conditions. Only around 200 such cases have been reported across the world till now. The fetus inside the baby's body usually weighs 250 to 500 grams and one in five lakh children is likely to be born with this condition.

According to Dr Rajashekar, 'fetus in fetu' happens when a single zygote splits into two and attaches to the baby's abdomen. The fetus is a half-formed structure, possesses all the organs except the brain and heart.

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1. Fetus Inside A Baby Boy: Infant Born With Rare Medical Condition In Karnataka
2. Pregnant Woman In Maharashtra Detected With Rare 'Fetus In Fetu' Condition