Wednesday, December 12, 2007
News: Arm Removed From Winged Girl's Back
A little girl dubbed the 'angel with wings' because of a third arm growing out of her back has undergone life or death surgery at a military hospital in Beijing.
A large team of doctors, neuro and plastic surgeons and orthapedic specialists carried out an operation to remove the extra limb from 11-year-old Ren Xin.
Sky's China Correspondent Peter Sharp said the expressions on the doctors' faces suggested it had gone well.
The extra arm came from an undeveloped parasitic twin.
Surgery was complicated because the parasite's spine was fused with Ren Xin's and a major blood vessel from it was connected to her organs.
Ren Xin's parents - poor farmers from Shanxi province - brought their daughter to Beijing because the provincial hospitals were unable to help her.
The operating team was led by one of China's most eminent surgeons, professor Yeqibin.
"This is a very rare case. There are only four cases like this in all of China," he said.
"It's an extremely complex and potentially dangerous operation for the patient."
Despite her physical condition, Ren Xin is an outstanding pupil and the years of suffering her infirmities have left her with one childhood dream.
Sitting up in bed before the operation she said: "I want to become a good doctor and a good daughter for my parents".
Ren xin is not an isolated case in China.
Birth defects in infants have soared more than 40 per cent since 2001, now accounting for between four and six per cent of total births every year.
Government officials have linked the rise to the deterioration of the country's environment.
The coal-rich province of Shanxi where Ren Xin was born has the highest rate of birth defects and is far above the national average.
A large team of doctors, neuro and plastic surgeons and orthapedic specialists carried out an operation to remove the extra limb from 11-year-old Ren Xin.Sky's China Correspondent Peter Sharp said the expressions on the doctors' faces suggested it had gone well.
The extra arm came from an undeveloped parasitic twin.
Surgery was complicated because the parasite's spine was fused with Ren Xin's and a major blood vessel from it was connected to her organs.
Ren Xin's parents - poor farmers from Shanxi province - brought their daughter to Beijing because the provincial hospitals were unable to help her.
The operating team was led by one of China's most eminent surgeons, professor Yeqibin.
"This is a very rare case. There are only four cases like this in all of China," he said.
"It's an extremely complex and potentially dangerous operation for the patient."
Despite her physical condition, Ren Xin is an outstanding pupil and the years of suffering her infirmities have left her with one childhood dream.
Sitting up in bed before the operation she said: "I want to become a good doctor and a good daughter for my parents".
Ren xin is not an isolated case in China.
Birth defects in infants have soared more than 40 per cent since 2001, now accounting for between four and six per cent of total births every year.
Government officials have linked the rise to the deterioration of the country's environment.
The coal-rich province of Shanxi where Ren Xin was born has the highest rate of birth defects and is far above the national average.
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