Prof (Dr) Ashok Kumar Mahapatra, who did the surgery with another neurosurgeon, told reporters that the ‘tail’ had been removed in a private hospital in Bhubaneswar.
In Odisha, a newborn was born with a spinal cord abnormality that doctors claimed was the world’s first known bony tail in the thoracic region on Thursday. Prof (Dr) Ashok Kumar Mahapatra, who did the surgery with another neurosurgeon, told reporters that the ‘tail’ had been removed in a private hospital in Bhubaneswar.
He explained, “The newborn baby had a spinal cord anomaly with a tail at the upper back and a dermal sinus pit in the coccygeal (tailbone) area, and this is the first known occurrence of a bony human tail in the thoracic region.” A congenital dermal sinus is a scaly, multi-layered tissue tube located somewhere between the nasal bridge and the tailbone along the body’s midline.
In the womb, most individuals develop a tail, which vanishes after eight weeks. The embryonic tail, on the other hand, does not always disappear, and the kid is born with it. “Human tails are an uncommon congenital abnormality, with just 195 cases reported worldwide so far. A true bony human tail, on the other hand, is extremely rare, with only 26 cases known, all of which are located at the lower end of the spine in the coccygeal area “According to Mahapatra. The tumor was found in the thoracic area in this case, according to the neurosurgeon at the Institute of Medical Sciences & SUM Hospital.
In the Puri district, the infant was born in a community health centre. The child was then taken to a private hospital. The tail was surgically removed by Mahapatra and neurosurgeon Dr. Rama Chandra Deo.
“The baby underwent three procedures in one sitting on November 25th of last year and has been doing well since then. It is an uncommon occurrence that must be disclosed in order to raise public awareness “Dr. Soubhagya Panigrahi, a neurosurgeon who was also present at the news briefing, agreed.
Prasanta Patnaik