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Dicephalus Parapagus Dipus
file:B. C. Hirst & G. A. Piersol, Human monstrosities. Wellcome L0027955.jpg, Skeletal structure of dicephalic twins. B. C. Hirst & G. A. Piersol, Human monstrosities. Wellcome L0027955. (1893) Dicephalic parapagus () is a rare form of conjoined twins, partial twinning with two heads side by side on one torso. Infants conjoined this way are sometimes called "two-headed babies" in popular media. The condition is also called parapagus dicephalus. If carried to term, most dicephalic twins are stillbirth, stillborn, or die soon after birth. A small number are known to have survived to adulthood. The extent to which limbs and organs are duplicated varies from case to case. One head may be only partially developed (anencephalic), or both may be complete. In some cases, two complete hearts are present as well, which improves their chances of survival. The total number of arms may be two, three or four. Their prospects are best if no attempt is made to separate them, except in cases in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Conjoined Twins
Conjoined twins – sometimes popularly referred to as Siamese twins – are twins joined ''in utero''. A very rare phenomenon, the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 49,000 births to 1 in 189,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence in Southwest Asia and Africa. Approximately half are stillborn, and an additional one-third die within 24 hours. Most live births are female, with a ratio of 3:1. Two theories exist to explain the origins of conjoined twins. The more generally accepted theory is ''fission'', in which the fertilized egg splits partially. The other theory, no longer believed to be the basis of conjoined twinning, is ''fusion'', in which a fertilized egg completely separates, but stem cells (which search for similar cells) find similar stem cells on the other twin and fuse the twins together. Conjoined twins share a single common chorion, placenta, and amniotic sac, although these characteristics are not exclusive to conjoined twins, as there are some monozyg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Torso
The torso or trunk is an anatomical term for the central part, or the core, of the body of many animals (including humans), from which the head, neck, limbs, tail and other appendages extend. The tetrapod torso — including that of a human — is usually divided into the ''thoracic'' segment (also known as the upper torso, where the forelimbs extend), the ''abdominal'' segment (also known as the "mid-section" or "midriff"), and the ''pelvic'' and '' perineal'' segments (sometimes known together with the abdomen as the lower torso, where the hindlimbs extend). Anatomy Major organs In humans, most critical organs, with the notable exception of the brain, are housed within the torso. In the upper chest, the heart and lungs are protected by the rib cage, and the abdomen contains most of the organs responsible for digestion: the stomach, which breaks down partially digested food via gastric acid; the liver, which respectively produces bile necessary for digestion; the large and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stillbirth
Stillbirth is typically defined as fetal death at or after 20 or 28 weeks of pregnancy, depending on the source. It results in a baby born without signs of life. A stillbirth can result in the feeling of guilt or grief in the mother. The term is in contrast to miscarriage, which is an early pregnancy loss, and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, where the baby dies a short time after being born alive. Often the cause is unknown. Causes may include pregnancy complications such as pre-eclampsia and birth complications, problems with the placenta or umbilical cord, birth defects, infections such as malaria and syphilis, and poor health in the mother. Risk factors include a mother's age over 35, smoking, drug use, use of assisted reproductive technology, and first pregnancy. Stillbirth may be suspected when no fetal movement is felt. Confirmation is by ultrasound. Worldwide prevention of most stillbirths is possible with improved health systems. Around half of stillbirths occur durin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anencephalic
Anencephaly is the absence of a major portion of the brain, skull, and scalp that occurs during embryonic development. It is a cephalic disorder that results from a neural tube defect that occurs when the rostral (head) end of the neural tube fails to close, usually between the 23rd and 26th day following conception. Strictly speaking, the Greek term translates as "without a brain" (or totally lacking the inside part of the head), but it is accepted that children born with this disorder usually only lack a telencephalon, the largest part of the brain consisting mainly of the cerebral hemispheres, including the neocortex, which is responsible for cognition. The remaining structure is usually covered only by a thin layer of membrane—skin, bone, meninges, etc., are all lacking. With very few exceptions, infants with this disorder do not survive longer than a few hours or days after birth. Signs and symptoms The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) descri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giacomo And Giovanni Battista Tocci
Giacomo and Giovanni Battista Tocci were conjoined twins born in Locana, Italy between 1875 and 1877 in either July or October. They toured in a circus and retired about 1900; details of their later lives are uncertain. Birth Their mother Maria Luigia Mezzanrosa was 19 years old; she had an easy time with the birth as they were rather small. They were delivered normally, with one head appearing first, the other head and torso second, and the pelvis and legs third. The one on their right was named Giovanni Battista, and the one on their left Giacomo. They had one umbilical cord and one placenta. Their father Giovanni Tocci had a breakdown due to the appearance of his first-born sons and was put into a lunatic asylum until he recovered a month later. Early childhood The twins' parents did not allow any thorough examination of them as they believed it would diminish their fame. The twins' father took them to Turin to be exhibited in the freak show, where the twins were examine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freak Show
A freak show, also known as a creep show, is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to in popular culture as "freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, those with intersex variations, those with extraordinary diseases and conditions, and others with performances expected to be shocking to viewers. Heavily tattooed or pierced people have sometimes been seen in freak shows (more common in modern times as a sideshow act), as have attention-getting physical performers such as fire-eating and sword-swallowing acts. Since at least the medieval period, deformed people have often been treated as objects of interest and entertainment, and crowds have flocked to see them exhibited. A famous early modern example was the exhibition at the court of King Charles I of Lazarus and Joannes Baptista Colloredo, two conjoined brothers born in Genoa, Italy. While Lazarus appeared to be otherwise ordinary, the underd ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Craniopagus Parasiticus
Craniopagus parasiticus is an extremely rare type of parasitic twinning occurring in about 2 to 3 of 5,000,000 births. In craniopagus parasiticus, a parasitic twin head with an undeveloped body is attached to the head of a developed twin. Fewer than a dozen cases of this type of conjoined twin have been documented in literature. Development The exact development of craniopagus parasiticus is not well known. However, it is known that the underdeveloped twin is a parasitic twin. Parasitic twins are known to occur ''in utero'' when monozygotic twins start to develop as an embryo, but the embryo fails to completely split. When this happens, one embryo will dominate development, while the other's development is severely altered. The key difference between a parasitic twin and conjoined twins is that in parasitic twins, one twin, the parasite, stops development during gestation, whereas the other twin, the autosite, develops completely. In normal monozygotic twin development, one egg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diprosopus
Diprosopus ( el, διπρόσωπος, "two-faced", from , , "two" and , euter "face", "person"; with Latin ending), also known as craniofacial duplication (cranio- from Greek , "skull", the other parts Latin), is an extremely rare congenital disorder whereby parts (accessories) or all of the face are duplicated on the head.Definition of diprosopus at MedicineNet. Accessed 8 January 2006.'Miracle baby' is feted in India a BBC News Accessed 10 April 2008. Development Although classically considered conjoined twinning (whi ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polycephaly
Polycephaly is the condition of having more than one head. The term is derived from the Greek stems ''poly'' (Greek: "πολύ") meaning "many" and ''kephalē'' (Greek: "κεφαλή") meaning "head". A polycephalic organism may be thought of as one being with a supernumerary body part, or as two or more beings with a shared body. Two-headed animals (called bicephalic or dicephalic) and three-headed (tricephalic) animals are the only type of multi-headed creatures seen in the real world, and form by the same process as conjoined twins from monozygotic twin embryos. In humans, there are two forms of twinning that can lead to two heads being supported by a single torso. In dicephalus parapagus dipus, the two heads are side by side. In craniopagus parasiticus, the two heads are joined directly to each other, but only one head has a functional torso. Survival to adulthood is rare, but does occur in some forms of dicephalus parapagus dipus. There are many occurrences of multi-h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
