Indian doctors remove two parasitic foetuses from 20-day-old baby
Surgeons say the rare condition, foetus in foetu, was linked to a triplet pregnancy; the infant was discharged a month after the operation
Indian paediatric surgeons have removed two parasitic foetuses from the abdomen of a 20-day-old baby in a rare operation that doctors described as challenging but successful.
The condition, known as foetus in foetu, develops early in pregnancy when a malformed foetus is partially absorbed by its twin and continues to grow by drawing nutrients from the host. Fewer than 200 cases have been reported worldwide, with only a handful documented in India.
In the most recent case, reported by the medical team to the BBC, the mother had been pregnant with triplets and two of the foetuses began to grow inside the abdomen of the infant. Dr. Anand Sinha, the paediatric surgeon who led the operation, said, "The surgery was challenging but the baby is healthy and doing well." The infant was discharged from hospital about a month after the operation and, according to the surgical team, has had no complications since.
Surgeons cautioned that the recovery period after such procedures is crucial, because infection or other complications could prove fatal for a child. The team emphasised the need for careful post-operative monitoring to guard against those risks.
The recent success follows a tragic outcome in 2024, when a three-day-old baby in Kolkata died a day after undergoing surgery to remove two malformed foetuses from his abdomen. That case underlined both the rarity of foetus in foetu and the high stakes involved in neonatal surgery to remove parasitic tissue.
Medical literature describes foetus in foetu as an uncommon developmental anomaly arising very early in gestation. Though the parasitic foetus is not a living twin in the conventional sense, it can develop structures and increase in size by deriving nourishment from its host, sometimes causing abdominal masses or other complications that prompt imaging and surgical intervention.
The recent operation adds to the small number of documented cases managed successfully, and highlights the technical demands of neonatal surgery in such rare congenital conditions. The surgical team reported ongoing follow-up for the infant to ensure there are no late complications as the child continues to develop.