Surgeons reconstruct baby's head swollen to double in size
Source: AFP |
June 28, 2013, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
INDIAN doctors said yesterday they have successfully completed a second round of reconstructive surgery on the skull of a baby suffering from a rare disorder that caused her head to nearly double in size.
The four-hour-long surgery on the skull of one-year-old Roona Begum was carried out at a hospital near New Delhi where last month surgeons also drained fluid from the youngster's head in a life-saving operation.
"Today's surgery was the biggest one so far in terms of remodeling her head. I think it went pretty well," neurosurgeon Sandeep Vaishya said.
Roona was born with hydrocephalus, a condition that causes cerebrospinal fluid to build up on the brain.
Her condition had caused her head to swell to a circumference of 94 centimeters, putting pressure on her brain and making it impossible for her to sit upright or crawl. Roona's head had shrunk to about 60 centimeters after procedures conducted in May and doctors expect it to shrink further after yesterday's operation.
During the surgery at the hospital run by the private Fortis Healthcare group, Vaishya and two other surgeons sliced through the baby's scalp in an attempt to bring her bones closer and compress her head.
Plastic surgeon Rashmi Taneja, who worked alongside Vaishya on the surgery, said she had never before come across a case like Roona's.
"When we first cut open her head, all you saw were these fragments of bone floating over a fluid-filled sac. It's one of the most challenging cases I have seen," Taneja said.
Roona's right and left skull bones were some 7.6 centimeters apart, underscoring the challenges faced by the doctors, who drained fluid from the tissues inside, causing them to collapse and shrink.
The surgeons then drilled tiny holes into her bones, pulled them close and stitched them together, ensuring the tissues inside were now covered completely by bone fragments.
Two Norwegian college students, Jonas Borchgrevink and Nathalie Krantz, started an online campaign that has raised $57,000 to help her family and fund any future aftercare.
The four-hour-long surgery on the skull of one-year-old Roona Begum was carried out at a hospital near New Delhi where last month surgeons also drained fluid from the youngster's head in a life-saving operation.
"Today's surgery was the biggest one so far in terms of remodeling her head. I think it went pretty well," neurosurgeon Sandeep Vaishya said.
Roona was born with hydrocephalus, a condition that causes cerebrospinal fluid to build up on the brain.
Her condition had caused her head to swell to a circumference of 94 centimeters, putting pressure on her brain and making it impossible for her to sit upright or crawl. Roona's head had shrunk to about 60 centimeters after procedures conducted in May and doctors expect it to shrink further after yesterday's operation.
During the surgery at the hospital run by the private Fortis Healthcare group, Vaishya and two other surgeons sliced through the baby's scalp in an attempt to bring her bones closer and compress her head.
Plastic surgeon Rashmi Taneja, who worked alongside Vaishya on the surgery, said she had never before come across a case like Roona's.
"When we first cut open her head, all you saw were these fragments of bone floating over a fluid-filled sac. It's one of the most challenging cases I have seen," Taneja said.
Roona's right and left skull bones were some 7.6 centimeters apart, underscoring the challenges faced by the doctors, who drained fluid from the tissues inside, causing them to collapse and shrink.
The surgeons then drilled tiny holes into her bones, pulled them close and stitched them together, ensuring the tissues inside were now covered completely by bone fragments.
Two Norwegian college students, Jonas Borchgrevink and Nathalie Krantz, started an online campaign that has raised $57,000 to help her family and fund any future aftercare.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
