A baby boy born by Indian mom has 'parasitic' twin whose arms and head still fastened to his upper body. The twins were born together with separate lungs and heart, but share one liver and a big portion of the alimentary system as well as the blood supply. Doctors say there's a high chance the twins can be separated but admitted that the process will be risky and lengthy.
On Nov. 12, an Indian mom, named Hemlata Singh, 28, gave birth to a baby whom she did not expect to have "parasitic" twins attached on her baby's chest. The twins were born at Ummed Women's Hospital in Udaipur, weighing 8lbs and had separate lungs and heart. Though the little boy is formed fully, his twin had missing legs and genitals and was just affixed to his chest.
The mother of the twins, Hemlata Singh, 28, who never underwent any ultrasound during her pregnancy, expected that she would give birth at home. However, when her expected due date has already passed for one week, she decided to go to a hospital and ask for professional assistance finally.
In Ummed Women's Hospital in Udaipur, doctors and mom were stunned of the birth of the twins. Dr. Anurag Singh, the hospital's Pediatric Professor, stated that the twins were a rare case of parasitic twin, a condition which occurs when one twin stops developing during gestation and becomes vestigial to the fully formed dominant twin, called the autositic twin, according to Embryo Project Encyclopedia.
"They luckily have separate hearts but share the internal mammary artery," Mail Online quoted Dr. Singh as saying. Although the twins share one liver and most of the blood vessels, physicians are very hopeful that they can separate the twins. Dr. Singh also said that there's a high chance the twins can be separated but confessed that the operation will be complicated and extensive.
