Foetus-in-foetu: Imaging Diagnosis by the Presence of Organogenetic Differentiation

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AKP Wu, WWM Lam, KL Chan

Hong Kong J Radiol 2007;10:34-7

Foetus-in-foetu is a rare condition in which a vertebrate foetus is enclosed within the abdomen of a normally developing foetus. This report is of a foetus-in-foetu in a newborn boy, in which no vertebral column was identified radiologically or pathologically. The ultrasound and computed tomography features will be discussed. The diagnosis was confirmed by pathology based on the presence of highly developed organogenesis. This patient demonstrates that the presence of a vertebral column is not essential for making the diagnosis.