Friday, February 04, 2005
'Mermaid girl' to have legs split
BBC NEWS | Health | 'Mermaid girl' to have legs split: (link opens in a new window)
"Surgeons in Peru are preparing for an operation to separate the legs of a girl born with the rare condition 'mermaid syndrome' or 'sirenomelia'.
Nine-month-old Milagros Cerron has been dubbed the 'little mermaid' because her fused legs resemble the tail of a fish.
Usually babies with the condition die within days of birth. Milagros is one of only three known survivors.
A medical team, led by surgeon Luis Rubio, will operate on the girl on 24 February in a hospital in Lima.
The team includes trauma surgeons, plastic surgeons, cardiovascular surgeons, neurologists, gynaecologists and a paediatrician, and the operation is expected to last five hours."
