A
baby boy born with four arms and four legs in Uganda is recovering well
after a successful three-hour operation. Paul Mukisa was born on May 27
to 28-year-old Margaret Awino, . Upon noticing the baby's deformity the
family rushed him to a nearby hospital near the small town of
Nabigingo. They were quickly referred to Mulago Hospital in the Ugandan
capital of Kampala. On Aug. 18 Paul finally received surgery.
"The
baby was given general anesthesia and the torso and trunk of the
parasitic twin -- which had two arms but no head or heart -- was
detached from the host baby," Dr. Nasser Kakembo, one of the surgeons
who performed the operation told CNN.
"Then
we also detached the lower limbs of the parasitic twin from the host,
which included disarticulating the right and left lower limbs as they
were attached by joints. We controlled the bleeding and fashioned skin
flaps to close the resulting wound," he said.
"There
were no intra-operative or post-operative complications and mild blood
loss and a precautionary blood transfusion was given." The baby has now
been reported to be recovering well and healthily breastfeeding.
He
is expected to remain at the hospital for about two more weeks. Paul's
condition is extremely rare, and is believed to occur when one twin
stops developing at some point during the surgery and merges with the
still-developing baby.
"The
father and mother were very grateful because at first they thought it
was due to witchcraft, and their baby was a laughing stock because of
the abnormalities," said Kakembo.
A
baby boy born with four arms and four legs in Uganda is recovering well
after a successful three-hour operation. Paul Mukisa was born on May 27
to 28-year-old Margaret Awino, . Upon noticing the baby's deformity the
family rushed him to a nearby hospital near the small town of
Nabigingo. They were quickly referred to Mulago Hospital in the Ugandan
capital of Kampala. On Aug. 18 Paul finally received surgery.