Sirenomelia: Mermaid Syndrome - Fantasy or Fact

Dr. Shainaz Tabassum, Dr. H. E Ramaraju, Dr. Anagha Shyam Prasad

Abstract: The mermaid syndrome (Sirenomelia) is an extremely rare anomaly, with an incidence of 0.8 - 1in 100, 000 live births, in which a newborn is born with legs fused together featuring a mermaid like appearance, an evolutionary defect in caudal region with degrees of leg adhesion, causing complete absence of lower limb. About 300 cases have been reported in the world literature so far, with 14 reported from India.

Keywords: sirenomelia, mermaid syndrome, congenital anomaly, antenatal care, fused legs, potter's facies