Incredible facts
A shocking incident occurred recently in China. A newborn girl born in Hong Kong was pregnant with twins.
Immediately after birth, doctors found two strange formations in her stomach. At first they thought it was a tumor, but when the surgery was performed, it turned out that the girl had two fetuses inside.
Although very rare, these cases are known in medicine. This anomaly, in which another fetus forms within one fetus, is called “fetus in fetu” and occurs in 1 out of 500,000 cases. In total, about 200 cases have been reported worldwide.
Fetal anomalies: fetus in fetu
Both fetuses were 8-10 weeks of development and were connected to the girl through the umbilical cord to a placenta-like mass. Their weight was 14.2 and 9.3 grams, and their spine, ribs, intestines and even limbs were formed. Although surgeons say the twins developed inside the girl's body, they were her half-brother or sister.
The photo shows each twin's spine
The embryos developed from the egg of a girl fertilized by her parents.
“Since the girl could not get pregnant on her own, the twins were fertilized by her parents, but it happened in the wrong place,” explained Dr. Yu Lai-man, a doctor.
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It is almost impossible to identify such cases during a prenatal examination, as the embryo inside the baby is too small.
The reason for this anomaly that occurred to the girl in 2010 remains unknown. The WHO classifies the anomaly as a type of tumor and may be related to multiple abortions by the mother.