BANGALORE,Febrauary29,2012: In a medical miracle, an infant was born with a foetus inside his abdomen in a Kengeri hospital. In normal circumstances, the foetus would have been his twin - in medical parlance, it is called 'foetus in fetu or baby within a baby'. A team of doctors at Rajarajeshwari Nagar Medical College and Hospital recently operated upon the two-month-old infant and removed the foetus from his abdomen. "The foetus could have been a twin which did not develop during the pregnancy in the mother's womb and descended into the child's abdomen," said Dr Keshav Murthy, assistant professor of paediatric surgery, Rajarajeshwari Medical College. It is a rare occurrence, maybe one in 5 lakh pregnancies, Dr Murthy said. "This is a rare disorder of surgico-pathological curiosity, where an aborted foetus is found within its partner. An antenatal scan showed a mass in the lower abdomen; postnatal, it looked like a swelling. The child was born on Dec 30, 2011," he said. Radiological investigations revealed a large, well-defined cystic mass. A team comprising Dr Murthy, Dr Adarsh and two other doctors removed the foetus last month. "Cross-examination showed two limb-like structures at the upper end of the mass, and well-developed bone, cartilage, friable pale areas and cystic structures," the doctor said. Sahana SP, 20, the mother, said doctors at a private hospital in Kamakshipalya had first detected a fibroid-like substance on the tip of her kidneys. "I was told there was no threat to my child and the fibroid would be removed after delivery. I was admitted to Rajarajeshwari Hospital, where my son was born through Caesarean section."
