Woman Gives Birth To Baby With Two Heads In Lagos (photo)

Doctors were expecting but were shocked to see a conjoined baby

Mother yet to be told of baby's condition

Baby suffers from rare condition called 'parapagus'

A woman gave birth to a baby with two heads, on Tuesday at Med-in specialist hospital, Osogbo street, Lagos. The birth came as a surprise as various scans indicated that the woman was to deliver a set of twins.

Due to the complexity of the case, both mother and baby had to be transferred to the Lagos state university teaching hospital (LUTH) for advanced care. According to a nurse who was present for the delivery at Med-In hospital, two cots had been prepared to receive twins but to their astonishment, the baby was conjoined.

In her words;

This is the first time I am seeing anything like this. I have watched it in movies but seeing it in real life was such an experience for me. Thankfully, the surgeon ensured that they survived.As I speak to you, the mother doesn’t know the condition of the babies. She still believes and expects to carry her twins. We haven’t told her yet. Only her husband was brought into the theatre to see his children and he was the one who went with the doctors to LUTH,

According to Med-In hospital doctor, Moses Dare, the baby was rushed to LUTH to ascertain if it both heads share the same vital organs.

In his words;

There is need to find out if they share major organs together. They may have to be flown abroad for separation if they have separate hearts and other vital organs. It is possible for them to survive. I have seen cases of twins like this in movie surviving and living normal lives.Normally, when we have cases of pregnant woman expecting twins, we usually go for elective caesarean, which was what the mother opted for.

But when the doctor was trying to extract one of the babies (first one), it got stuck and when he examined further, he discovered that there were two heads in one body. We are happy that the baby was delivered alive and placed on oxygen. Both heads were alive.It was really amazing. I am proud and thankful that we delivered the baby alive. Yes, several scans were done by the mother in the course of pregnancy at different places, but none discovered any abnormality. We are thankful that the operation was successful.

The condition presently suffered by the baby is called 'Parapagus'. its a rare condition where a baby has two heads and two necks with one torso. The Nigerian ministry of health has been informed on the matter.