Dr Chen 's view is that due to biases, not unique to China, allowing Jie-Jie to grow up with three arms would have been considered a taboo. He also felt that if the two left arms had been allowed to grow over time, there was a chance that one of them would become less functional.
Jie-jie's parents are said to be very pleased with the outcome of the operation. They were so worried about their son 's appearance initially that they hid him from public view.
Before the operation, both his arms were very sensitive, and Jie-jie would cry if they were touched.
Last month, Dr Chen 's medical team took three hours to perform the operation to remove the inner left arm. Because both left arms were very well developed, Dr Chen said they were not sure which arm to remove at first.
Jie-jie still needs to regain the use of his remaining left arm and his wound still needs to heal, but phase one of his recovery should be quick. The doctor says, however, that as he grows he will need long term physical therapy.
The hospital is one of the most experienced in China in dealing with unusual birth defects, including separating co-joined twins. But even with 20 years' experience of children's orthopaedic surgery, Dr Chen said he had never seen a case quite like Jie-jie's before.
He consulted on-line with specialists around the world before proceeding with the operation.
7 July 2006 |
