6-Month-Old Baby With Head-Sized Lump Near Brain Undergoes 'Challenging' Surgery

Doctors in India performed a "challenging" surgery on a six-month-old girl to remove a head-sized lump that formed near her brain. The procedure was successful and the baby's condition was stable, doctors said Tuesday.

The baby girl was born with a rare neural tube defect that caused a large cystic swelling at the back of her head. The swelling was increasing in size since her birth and had grown larger than the size of the head.

Doctors at SLG Hospitals in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad said the condition, known as giant encephalocele, leads to the accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid within the brain, causing increased pressure inside the skull. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, procedures for giant encephalocele are very challenging.

"We carefully planned the surgery to treat hydrocephalus and to remove the sac from the head. The most challenging aspect is to put the child on anesthesia for the surgery. Thanks to a team of experts, the surgery was taken-up with anesthesia. A month into the surgery, the baby girl is fine and is set to lead an active life," said Dr H Raghavendra, a senior neurosurgeon at the hospital, Telangana Today reported.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that approximately 375 babies are born each year in the United States with an encephalocele.

Raghavendra said due to the condition the baby was unable to track light and had difficulty in holding her own hand. Before the surgery, a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan showed "a large encephalocele with heniating neural tissue with Hydrocephalus and syringomyelia in cervical region," Raghavendra said, United News of India reported.

The child's condition is stable and she "is all set to lead an active life in the years ahead," Raghavendra added.