By: Natasha Archary
A Mexican baby girl has been born with a tail, in what is being described as a rare phenomenon which has only been recorded less than 200 times.
The otherwise healthy baby girl was born at Nuevo Leon Hospital earlier this month, to parents who are both in their twenties.
According to reports the girls parents were not alerted to the rare extremity during scans prior to her birth.
Doctors noticed the newborn had what looked like a tail growing from her tailbone upon delivery, which was soft and covered in hair and skin.
The infant’s tail was sharp and pointy at the tip and sat slightly to the left of her buttocks.
Speaking to media, a team of surgeons led by Dr Josue Rueda, ran scans to determine if the extremity could be removed.
The tail was approximately 5mm long and scans revealed that there was no spinal conditions resulting in the tail forming, such as spinal dysraphism.
However, the baby girl did cry when doctors pinched her tail and surgeons had to remove the tail while the newborn was under anaesthetic.
It has been reported that the infant’s tail did not move but could be moved gently without the child crying.
Doctors say the operation was successful and the baby was discharged shortly after removing the appendage.
Only one in 17 babies are known to have the defect with some forming with arteries, veins and bundles of nerves.
The condition is so rare that in some religions, babies born with a tail are worshipped or considered holy.
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