Baby born with half skull in Ctg
Staff Reporter, Chittagong
A child was born without the upper part of its skull at the Banshkhali upazila health complex in Chittagong yesterday. Jannatul Naeem (23) gave birth to the girl around 8.35 am. The baby was born through normal delivery and weighed 3.2 kg after the birth. Doctors said the foetus was infected by a virus in the womb and this led to the abnormality in the child. In medical terms, it is called anencephaly. It is the absence of a major portion of the brain, skull, and scalp that occurs during embryonic development. It is also called underdeveloped brain. There is nothing to be afraid of or to believe that it occurred due to black magic. This happens in one out of 10,000 to 100,000 births, said Dr Azizur Rahman Siddique, civil surgeon of Chittagong.
The new born does not have the upper part of the skull, including the brain. The foetus might have been infected by virus in the mothers womb and so it was born with this condition. The viral infection of the mothers body is revealed through the child. Usually these kinds of babies do not survive, said Dr Towhidul Anwar, medical officer of Banshkhali upazila health complex. We could not immediately ascertain as to which type of virus had infected the mother. Medical tests are needed to do so, he added. Sources said the baby was admitted to Chittagong Medical College Hospital for better treatment. Jannatul Naeem and her husband, Abdur Rahman, residents of Napora village in Banshkhalis Shekherkhil union, also have a three-year-old son.
