A young woman
terminated her pregnancy after six months when doctors told her she was
carrying a mermaid-like foetus, it has been reported.
The
23-year-old took the drastic action after a scan at the Health Care Center for
Women and Children in Yichang City, in Central China’s Hubei Province.
Scans showed
the foetus had developed a 'tail-like growth' but no legs.It also did not have
a bladder and had a stunted liver, reports said.
Doctors at the
hospital told mother 'Wu' the foetus was suffering from a rare condition known
as sirenomelia, or "Mermaid Syndrome".
It is a rare
congenital deformity in which the legs are fused together, giving them the
appearance of a mermaid’s tail.
Wu decided to
terminate her pregnancy after specialists estimated that the baby would only
survive for a few hours after birth.
The causes
behind Mermaid Syndrome are still a medical mystery and it is said to occur
only once in every 100,000 pregnancies.
Milagros
Cerron, another child born with sirenomelia, later underwent a successful
operation to separate her legs
According to
reports, there are only two known survivors of Mermaid Syndrome in the world
today.
Emehachanga
Daily Mirrors






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