Docs perform surgery on boy with ‘two heads’, eye Guinness record
ALLAHABAD: A child born with a rare birth defect that divided his head into two was operated successfully by a team of doctors led by neurosurgeon Dr Prakash Khetan.
In what may probably be the first such case in India, the 10-year-old boy was suffering from lymphangioma of brain.
Lymphangioma of the brain is very rare as lymphatics are not found in the brain. Only eight such cases have been reported around the world till date.
“This was the first patient in medical history whose head got divided into two as a result of the condition,” claimed Dr Khetan.
He said the child was recuperating fast after the surgery. “The second surgery to construct the skull will be done later. This rare case will be sent to Guinness Book of World Records,” Dr Khetan said.
Dr Khaitan already holds a Guinness record for removing as many as 296 hydatid cysts from the brain of a 10-year-old girl in 2011.
The Journal of Pediatric Neurosurgery will soon publish the case.
The patient, Mohd Asad, was born with an abnormally large head which was slightly divided into two. As he grew older, the abnormality also increased giving the impression that he had two heads.
“He used to vomit frequently and had poor mental growth. His parents were too poor to take him to a good hospital for treatment during the early stage. However, when the complications increased, they approached me for treatment,” Dr Khetan said.
“Initial examination and MRI results showed that his skull bones were not properly formed and there was abnormal pressure on his brain which was leading to medical complications. The brain’s lymphangiomas were cystic (not solid) in nature and had a thick fluid inside. It was also attached to the brain tissue,” he said.
Dr Khetan said the surgery was quite difficult as the wall of lymphangiomas was partially attached to major vessels of the brain and was compressing it significantly.
Led by Dr Khetan, the team of doctors included Dr Yogendra Baghel, Dr Sushma Khetan, Dr Sunil Kumar Kannaujia, Dr Arun Kumar, Dr Govind Prasad Mishra, Dr RD Sonker and Dr Jyotsana Agarwal.
“The surgery was performed at a private hospital in Naini in the last week of August. As parents were unable to afford the treatment, we performed the operation at minimum cost,” said Dr Khetan.