A newborn in Sharjah has a new chance at life thanks to a complicated surgery by specialists.
Born with around 30 percent of its brain outside the skull, the condition, called 'occipital encephalocele', was discovered when the Emirati mother underwent a routine scan at Al Zahra Hospital, Khaleej Times reported.
Affects one in 5,000 births in the GCC, the mother and father of the baby were quickly informed of the anomaly and the necessity of an operation.
When the mother was in her 38th week of pregnancy, C-section was performed and the baby was immediately rushed to the neonatal ICU, where it was kept under extreme sterile conditions and monitored round the clock.
"This case was unique. It was crucial to have a multidisciplinary team and an obstetrician who has dealt with a similar case in the past," obstetrics and gynecology consultant Dr Shama Nawaz said.
"In my 30 years of experience, this is only the second time I have encountered such a case.
The surgery was a two-stage process, performed by a team of specialists under specialist neurosurgeon and clinical administrator Dr Bobby Jose.
The first stage saw the team separate the protruding part of the brain and placed back into the skull with an artificial membrane.
The second stage was completed on a different day and saw the team use a tube to drain the fluid accumulated in the brain.
"It was an extremely complex case. The part of the brain outside the skull had to be carefully handled and repositioned inside. Then, recreating the covering of the brain was an extremely delicate and intricate job. The anesthesia for such a small child was very demanding which was well handled by our anesthesia team under Dr Hazem Daaji and Dr Ayman Hassan," Dr Jose said.
After the successful operation, the child was discharged on the 20th day, after exhibiting full recovery.
