AIIMS doctors separate 15kg 'parasitic twin' from 17-year-old boy
What's the story
In a rare and complex surgery, a team of doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi separated a 15kg "parasitic twin" from a 17-year-old boy.
The teenager, from Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, had been living with the condition since birth. He carried additional lower limbs and external genitalia on his abdomen—a condition called "parasitic twinning."
This type of conjoined twinning is extremely rare with only 40 documented cases in medical literature.
Personal impact
Teenager's journey with parasitic twinning
The teenager felt sensations like touch, pain, and temperature in the parasitic limb but lived a relatively normal life, barring occasional abdominal pain.
His condition compelled him to drop out of school at eight due to social isolation and medical warnings of potential fatality due to shared cardiac connections.
When he visited AIIMS on January 28, doctors mistook his covered abdomen for a carried child. However, examination revealed two fully developed lower limbs with external genitalia attached to his abdomen.
Preoperative planning
Medical evaluation and surgery preparation at AIIMS
A multidisciplinary team of surgeons, radiologists, and anesthesiologists assessed his condition.
CT angiography revealed that the blood supply of the parasitic limb originated from an internal mammary artery branch.
Scans also detected a large abdominal cystic mass.
Due to socio-economic constraints, early prenatal detection of his condition wasn't possible.
After detailed preoperative planning, surgery was planned for February 8.
Surgical procedure
Complex 2-phase surgery successfully conducted
The surgery was divided into two phases: removing the parasitic limb through careful dissection and vessel ligation and excising the abdominal cystic mass.
Surgeons also discovered and removed underdeveloped testes at the site of attachment.
The second phase involved careful separation of the cystic mass from surrounding organs, especially an abnormally extended bladder.
The operation took about 2-2.5 hours and was successful with no further health complications.