Fact Check: Old news of baby girl born with rare congenital heart disease shared as recent
An image of a baby girl resting in the lap of a woman is widely being shared on social media.
By Tejal Sinha Published on 25 Nov 2021 3:40 AM GMT
Hyderabad: An image of a baby girl resting in the lap of a woman is widely being shared on social media.
Users claim that the baby was born with her heart pumping outside the body. Users said the child needs Rs 10 lakh for treatment. Users are requesting people to share the image as much as possible.
"The baby's heart is outside. For the baby's operation, they need Rs 10 lakh. So please share the baby's picture. You need not give money but share this. They get Rs 2 per share only to help this baby (sic)," reads a message.
NewsMeter received this viral claim on Whatsapp.
The viral post was also shared on Facebook in September and October.
Click here to view the viral posts.
Fact Check
The claim is misleading.
NewsMeter performed a Google Reverse Image Search of the viral image. The fact check team was directed to a report on 'Express' published on April 10, 2017.
According to the report, the baby girl's name is Hemalata. She has a 50 percent survival chance.
"Hemalata was born with the rare congenital condition at a state-run hospital in Chhatarpur district of Madhya Pradesh, on April 5. This rare medical condition in which the heart is abnormally located either partially or totally outside of the thorax occurs in 1 in 125,000," the report said.
The baby was however sent to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi along with a doctor due to her serious condition.
A similar report along with a few pictures of the baby girl was also published on the 'Mirror' website.
According to the report, the family had no money for the operation and the state government came to the rescue. "The destitute father eventually got help three days after the child's birth when the state government came in for aid and sent the baby for treatment at All India Institute for Medical Sciences in New Delhi. The newborn's treatment would be carried out with financial assistance under the state government's Child Heart Treatment Scheme," the report said.
"Dr. Lakhan Tiwari, a pediatrician of the district hospital, said that Premkumari, wife of Arvind Patel, a resident of Khajuraho, gave birth to a baby girl at the Community Health Center on Wednesday, which surprised everyone. The heart of this baby girl was out of the body and the beating was clearly visible. She was brought to the district hospital to bring him back to normalcy. From here she was further referred to AIIMS in Delhi. Dr. Tiwari said that such a case comes to the fore in lakhs. One's heart is visible from the outside; it is not a normal situation. The reason for this can be the effect of radiation, rays at the time of the solar eclipse, etc (sic)," News 18 Hindi report said.
According to a report published by the Times of India on April 15, 2017, the baby girl lost the battle to survive during the surgery at AIIMS.
"Born with her heart beating outside her body in Chhatarpur district of Madhya Pradesh, little Hemlata lost her battle with life despite hardened efforts by doctors at AIIMS Delhi. Doctors had performed the surgery placing her heart, which was attached to her chest thorax with major arteries and veins, inside the skin by artificially creating a cavity. However, a few hours after the surgery, the heart lost its rhythm and stopped beating inside the artificial cavity following injection," the report said.
It is therefore evident that the claim is misleading. The viral post of the baby girl born with heart-pumping outside the body dates back to 2017. However, the baby from MP lost her battle with life during surgery in AIIMS, Delhi.
