In July I reported on a baby that was born with 4 legs. It is a rare condition that is said to happen when a set of twins fails to separate inutero.I wonder if this condition occurs more than we know because a toddler in the UK is currently waiting to have half of the extra limbs she was born with; removed.
Lakshmi Tatma is set to undergo a 40-hour operation to remove two of her useless arms and legs.
The tot was born joined to a ‘parasitic twin’ (a second baby that it is incompletely formed or wholly dependent on the body functions of the complete fetus.)
The headless ‘twin’ is joined to Lakshmi at the pelvis and has its own spinal column and kidney.
Without the operation the little girl would never be able to walk or crawl and would be unlikely to live past her early teens, doctors said.
The extraordinary eight-limbed baby was born in a poverty-stricken region of Bihar, India – on the day devoted to the celebration of the four-armed Hindu deity Vishnu.
Lakshmi’s mom believes her daughter was “a miracle, a reincarnation” of Vishnu, a mystical figure that is thought to be the master of and beyond the past, present and future, the creator and destroyer of all existences, one who supports, sustains and governs the Universe and originates and develops all elements within.
Vishnu has 4 arms, but only 2 legs. Lakshmi has 4 of each making her more special!
The operation is expected to cost about £100,000 and luckily for this family, is not the most complex in the world.
