20-day-old baby weighing 1.160 kg undergoes successful brain surgery

The baby, who cried late after birth, was referred to Sarvodaya Hospital for respiratory distress and perinatal asphyxia.

Surgeons at Faridabad-based Sarvodaya Hospital & Research Centre successfully conducted brain surgery on a 20-day-old baby boy weighing only 1.1160 kg. Neurosurgery of such a low-weighing baby is quite rare. The surgery was done by opening the skull and removing a life-threatening blood clot from the brain which caused a seizure in the neonate. The premature baby was one among twins born preterm at 33 weeks to parents Deevakar Jha and Deepa Mishra. The baby, who cried late after birth, was referred to Sarvodaya Hospital for respiratory distress and perinatal asphyxia, where a team of surgeons led by Dr Pankaj Dawar and Dr Mukesh Pandey took the child under their supervision.

Dr Pankaj Dawar, Senior Consultant, Centre for Brain & Spine, Sarvodaya Hospital & Research Centre, said, At birth, the baby weighed 1160 kg, but had perinatal asphyxia and respiratory distress thereafter and was immediately admitted to Sarvodaya Hospital. He was put on a ventilator for five days. On the 19th day of his birth, the baby suffered from a seizure. An MRI scan revealed a large intracranial blood clot inside the skull. On Day 19 of his birth and weighing only 1.160 kg, he was wheeled into the operation theatre for brain surgery. His skull was opened to expose his brain (mini-craniotomy) and the blood clot (hematoma) was successfully removed.

Dr Manish Pahuja, Consultant, Department of Anaesthesia, Sarvodaya Hospital and Research Centre said, Brain surgery of a baby of such low weight requires very careful consideration and specialized equipment for anaesthesia. The presence of a blood clot in the brain of a baby of such age and low weight posed a huge challenge for us. If untreated, the condition would have proved fatal. Even if the baby had survived, he would have suffered from neural problems and the brain would not have developed fully. After successful brain surgery and removal of the blood clot, the baby is now perfectly fine. He is gaining weight and meeting all neural milestones adequately at the last follow up visit.