Baby Boy With One Eye And No Nose Dies Seven Hours After Birth

In a rare medical incident, an infant born with one eye and no nose died a few hours after his birth. According to reports, the child suffered from a congenital disorder called Cyclopia, and did not survive past seven hours.

The infant had one eye socket and a single optical nerve, according to Yemeni journalist Karim Zarai, who also posted the child’s photos. Zarai said this was a "rare case," citing mention of a similar child in Greek mythology. The unique birth was reported in the Central Yemeni province of Bayda last Wednesday, said Gulf News

Meanwhile, local media news agency Saba said the child was born to Hussein al-Abbasi and his wife Zahra al-Abbasi at Al-Hilal maternity hospital in Rada'a district. The couple has several other children and none of them have genetic issues.

Though there is no official statement from the hospital about the birth and condition of the child, reports said the baby suffered from Cyclopia, wherein the infant is born with a single eye or a partially-divided eye.

According to medical journals, cyclopia often results in a miscarriage or stillbirth. And if a child is born, it is unlikely to survive beyond a few hours. Called holoprosencephaly, the condition occurs in about 1 in 100,000 newborns.

There’s no way to prevent cyclopia and there’s currently no cure as the condition is brain-related. A baby with cyclopia usually has no nose, but a nose-like growth that sometimes develops above the eye while the baby is in gestation. Similar cases are reported in animals too.

However, media reports quickly attributed the condition in the Yemeni baby to the conflict in Yemen and the alleged use of internationally prohibited weapons to bomb civilians in various areas. But, the allegations were not verified by any medical team.

A similar incident was reported in Indonesia recently wherein a woman gave birth to a baby with cyclopia. Though the infant was immediately admitted to the intensive care unit under a medical team, she passed away the same night. According to the couple, the woman had not undergone an ultrasound during the pregnancy. This was not her first child.