In a rare case, as many as eight fetuses were found in the abdomen of a 21-day-old baby during an operation in a private hospital here, doctors said.

"The size of the fetuses range from three centimetres to five centimetres and they were settled inside a cyst in the abdomen," Dr Md Imran, who performed the surgery, told PTI.

In medical terms, it is called fetus-in-fetu (FIF), a rare entity in which one malformed vertebrate fetus is enclosed within the body of its twin, according to a journal of National Library of Medicine.

"As per the papers and journals available so far, one fetus was reported in most of the FIF cases. Case of eight fetuses has not been reported from anywhere yet," Dr Imran claimed. He added that FIF is very rare and it occurs in one in five lakh live births.

The baby was born on October 10 in a government hospital in Jharkhand's Ramgarh district. The doctors found a lump in the abdomen and suggested to the parents to operate it immediately, as it might cause problems in the stomach.

"The baby was admitted to the hospital when she turned 21 days. In initial diagnosis, a cyst or tumour-like substance was found. It was located below the diaphragm. We decided to remove it through operation and it was performed on November 1. Then, we discovered eight fetuses one after another inside the part," he said.

The operation was successful and the baby's condition is normal right now. The baby has been kept under observation and she will be discharged in a week, he said.

The head of Rani hospital, Ranchi, Rajesh Singh told PTI, "Since it is a rare case, we are preparing it to be published in international journals."