A baby has been born with a four-inch tail growing from its buttocks in an extremely rare case in China.
Paediatrician Dr Li uploaded footage of the appendage online following the child’s birth at Hangzhou Children’s Hospital.
According to Dr Li, the unusual growth is likely the result of incomplete degeneration and he suspected the child has a tethered spinal cord.
Spinal cord magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) later confirmed the suspicions, he added.
A tethered spinal cord is a condition in which the spinal cord is abnormally attached to surrounding tissues, typically at the base of the spine.
Normally, the spinal cord floats freely within the spinal canal, allowing for normal movement and function.
However, in cases of tethered spinal cord, this movement is restricted, which can lead to various neurological problems.
Remarkably, the case is not the first time a baby has been born with a tail in China.
In 2014, five-month-old Nuo Nuo was born with spina bifida, a developmental congenital disorder which leaves a gap in the spine. Within days of his birth his distraught mother noticed a tail beginning to grow, which ballooned to five-inches in length.
Fearing for the future of her son, Nuo Nuo’s mother urged surgeons in Changsha, China, to find a way to remove it.
But they refused to operate, and said there is nothing they can do for the child as the tail is connected to his nervous system and removing it will leave permanent damage.
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