Extremely rare birth defects

Birth defects like the Mermaid syndrome, a deformity where the legs are fused together, Craniopagus, a phenomenon where twins are joined at the head, and Dicephalic parapagus, a condition of having two heads, occur rarely but prove challenging to the medical world.From Pakistan to Brazil to more recently India- conjoined twins radhana and Stuti will be operated in the same hospital they were born and abandoned by their parents.

Peruvian doctor Luis Rubio play with baby Milagros Cerron, nine-month-old, in a public hospital in Lima, Peru in this Feb. 4, 2005 file photo. Peruvian surgeons have performed an initial operation to separate the fused legs of a 9-month-old girl known as the "baby mermaid" because of her rare birth defect, her doctor said Thursday. Dr. Luis Rubio said his team inserted three silicone bags on Tuesday into the tight coating of skin around Milagros Cerron's legs.(AP Photo/Martin Mejia, FILE) less

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Fri, Dec 23, 2011 11:20 AM AST (Arabian)