Kid with 34 fingers to go under knife

Tips and toes

Fifteen-month-old Akshit, a resident of Bareilly in UP, is now being treated at the orthopaedics department of AIIMS and will be operated upon for reconstruction of the extra fingers in the hands and legs. Born with a rare congenital defect, he immediately shot to fame and found a space in the Guinness Book of World Records for being born with seven fingers in each hand and ten fingers in each leg.

“Akshit could neither stand nor could cling on to things. The extra fingers are fully formed and look exactly like the other. He cannot stand on his own. No shoes or slippers fit in,” Amrita Saxena, the child’s mother said.

Dr PP Kotwal, head of the orthopaedics department, said: “This is a condition medically known as polydactyly. It is an extremely rare case. We will do a detailed assessment of the tendons and bones in the hands and feet before we decide on what kind of reconstructive surgery is needed.”

According to medical reports, Akshit has no thumb and the reason for being born with such deformity is not known yet. “Doctors will have to create a thumb out of one of the fingers and in the toes we will have to restore only five fingers that will help him walk,” he said.

“Our main concern is which finger to restore and which one to remove surgically. The child should be able to walk and hold things after the surgery. The surgery should in no way harm the functioning of other organs,” Dr Kotwal said.