A city hospital successfully performed a surgery for craniosynostosis on a 15-month old girl baby. Craniosynostosis is a condition where the fibrous sutures of the skull of an infant fuse prematurely by turning into bone, thereby changing the pattern of the skull.

The parents of the girl had noticed the deformities of the skull and overtly protuberant eyes, when the child was just one month old. They approached various hospitals, where they were advised to take the baby for surgery when it was over a year, Dr. S. Venkatachalam

Anaesthesiologist of Medwin Hospital, told reporters here today.

A team of doctors of Medwin Hospital performed the surgery on the girl. The team comprised a neurosurgeon and plastic surgeon, which worked on the girl for around six and half hours. “The surgery was done at a very affordable cost,” he said.

The child, after post operative care of five days, was recovering well, he added.

Stating that the incidence of this condition was one in 2,500 live births, Dr. Thomas
Joseph, Neurosurgeon, said that the surgery was that of craniofacial advancement.

“The ideal age for surgery was between one and one-and-half years and the
only modality was corrective surgery, based on the extent of deformity,” he said.

If delayed, it may lead to various problems like eye disorders, growth retardation and decreased mental functions, Dr. Thomas said.