An Odisha couple was shocked to find that their newborn twins were conjoined at the chest and abdomen.
The yet to be named babies were delivered at Dhenkanal District Headquarters Hospital, in the Indian state of Odisha on 1 July. The birth was via C-section, and the conjoined baby girls were born facing each other.
“This is a case of multiple malformations. The twins are thoracopagus,” Dr Saroj Satpathy of the Sadar Vallabhbhai Patel Post Graduate Institute for Paediatrics told Sputnik.
The fused babies share a common heart and liver, confirmed the doctor.
The doctor described it as a rarely seen congenital anomaly accompanied by severe mortality and morbidity. Conjoined twins of the thoracopagus type means fusion is anterior, at the chest and involving the heart.
“The twins are currently stable in the intensive care unit. Children with this condition have very slim chances of survival. A seven-member special team has been created to investigate the possibilities of surgery,” Dr Satpathy added.
The father of the twins said they had no idea about the complications. “My wife had undergone an ultrasound at Dhenkana District hospital last month but the doctors had not disclosed to us about the test report.”