Milagros Cerrón is one of the world's most unusual babies. She was born with sirenomelia, or mermaid syndrome, a condition in which the legs are fused together. This rare birth disorder affects one in every 70,000-100,000 babies (it occurs with about the same frequency as conjoined twins).
What makes Milagros really special is the fact that she is still alive. Aptly, her name means 'miracles'. She is one of only two known survivors with this condition worldwide - the other is a 16-year-old US girl named Tiffany Yorks. Almost all sirenomelia babies die within days of delivery owing to serious defects in vital organs, particularly in the kidneys, bladder and associated ducts.
Milagros was born to poor parents from an Andean village near Huancayo in Peru.
What makes Milagros really special is the fact that she is still alive. Aptly, her name means 'miracles'. She is one of only two known survivors with this condition worldwide - the other is a 16-year-old US girl named Tiffany Yorks. Almost all sirenomelia babies die within days of delivery owing to serious defects in vital organs, particularly in the kidneys, bladder and associated ducts.
Milagros was born to poor parents from an Andean village near Huancayo in Peru.
Born with her legs fused to the ankles and her feet splayed, Milagros looked like one of the mythical mermaids before her operation.
In June 2005 doctors successfully performed risky surgery to separate her legs to above her knees.
The second operation was carried out to separate the remaining fused tissue just below the groin.
In June 2005 doctors successfully performed risky surgery to separate her legs to above her knees.
The second operation was carried out to separate the remaining fused tissue just below the groin.
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