Pregnant woman bitten by deadly snake dies; baby in womb survives after rare surgery

Doctors miraculously saved a baby who was still in the mother's womb after the woman died of a snake bite in the Philippines.

The pregnant woman was brought to a hospital in Quirino province in an unconscious state Wednesday. Her skin had turned blue by then. She was declared dead on arrival, Philippines Lifestyle reported.

Chief surgeon Dr. Moises Lazaro decided to immediately perform a postmortem cesarean to save the baby who was still in the mother's womb.

"A pregnant mother who was bitten by a venomous snake was brought to the hospital today, Aug. 4, 2021, at about 8:30 am, with no signs of life and cyanotic, hence, declared Dead on Arrival (DOA)," the hospital said. "On his assessment, Dr. Moises V. Lazaro, the Chief of Hospital opted for immediate postmortem cesarean wherein the baby was about to die. At last, the baby was successfully revived."

The baby is under observation at the neonatal intensive care unit of the hospital. Doctors dubbed the incident "a miracle" as the infant inside the womb usually dies in such cases. They said the baby miraculously survived following an emergency postmortem cesarean.

It was not clear when and how the pregnant woman was bitten by the snake. The species of the venomous snake was also not known.

The identities of the victim or her family members were not revealed. It was not known if the snake that bit the woman had been captured.

According to the National Library of Medicine, cesarean delivery in case of a mother's death is very important to save the life of the child. Such surgeries are rare. The earlier the fetus is delivered, the better are the chances of survival of the baby.