Maomao, a 10 day-old baby who was born with a defect known as sirenomelia, or ‘mermaid syndrome,’ is undergoing a medical check-up by doctors at the Changsha Children’s hospital, Hunan Province, China.Doctors in central China defect in which the legs are born fused together, state media reported.
The baby was abandoned in front of the hospital gate and admitted on Nov. 12. A note found inside the baby's clothes said only that the baby was born on Nov. 9.Doctors said the baby also suffers from severe internal defects it has no kidney or urinary tract, its heart does not function properly, its anus and genitals are underdeveloped, its alimentary tract is deformed, and its intestines are obstructed.Doctors were only able determine the baby's gender through an ultrasonic examination.Doctors are studying the baby to determine a schedule for operations, including a possible separation of the legs.
There are only two known cases in the world of children who survived the affliction. Tiffany Yorks, a 17-year-old American had her legs successfully separated when she was a baby, and two-year-old Milagros Cerron, from Peru had her legs surgically separated last year.
