It isn’t completely unheard of, and doctors know how to deal with it, but it sure is strange: check out this condition that literally turns babies inside out.
It’s amazing what doctors and hospitals can do.
Elliotte Sargent was born with her organs hanging outside her body. She was diagnosed in the womb with gastroschisis, a condition that causes a baby’s organs to grow outside their body, through a hole in their abdomen.
The hole doesn’t close up, and the child is born with everything hanging out in the open.
Thankfully, doctors know how to deal with gastroschisis. They perform surgery on babies afflicted with it, immediately after they are born to set things right.
(photo credit: www.youtube.com)
Her Organs Were in Plastic
In baby Elliotte’s case, this is what happened. Dailymail.co.uk reports on how, strangely, all her parts still wouldn’t fit inside her body though, but this didn’t prove to be a problem.
To keep things protected, the organs were sealed in a plastic bag around Elliotte’s abdomen, keeping the air and any infection, out.
Elliotte’s organs were then let to work with gravity, to gradually drop back into her body.
And they did. It’s pretty incredible. But it’s not all roses, when it comes to gastroschisis.
While the condition is fixable, the scary thing about it is that doctors don’t really know why it happens. And not only that, it’s actually on the rise.
(photo credit: www.pixabay.com)
Reports indicate that young moms under the age of 20 are giving birth to more babies that have gastroschisis.
Why? No one knows. It’s still relatively rare, with 1 in 3000 mom’s and babies having to deal with it, but it’s not something you’d want to become common.
It can be hard for the organs to deal with being exposed inside as well as outside the womb. Air can infect them and the amniotic fluid in the womb can damage them.
Amazingly, Elliotte is now at home, with all her organs safely and comfortably inside her body, though.
Another win for science.
Photo credit: Tatyana Vyc/Shutterstock
