Heartbreaking images show the plight of a ‘mermaid baby’
- Jermkwan Krathumnat, from Thailand, suffers from a rare form of Sirenomelia
- The medical condition is more frequently referred to as ‘Mermaid’s syndrome’
- Better known as ‘Kwam’, the toddler was also born with a severe cleft palate
Stephen Matthews For Mailonline
View
comments
These are the heartbreaking pictures of a ‘mermaid baby’ whose legs are bound together.
Jermkwan Krathumnat, 10 months old, is also blind in the right eye and has a deformed face.
Doctors are unable to determine its gender due to the rare form of Sirenomelia – frequently referred to as ‘Mermaid’s syndrome’ in which limbs are fused together.
Jermkwan Krathumnat, 10 months old, suffers from a rare form of Sirenomelia – frequently referred to as ‘Mermaid’s syndrome’ in which limbs are fused together
Better known as ‘Kwan’, her parents, of Kananchaburi, in Thailand, were also told she had a severe cleft palate.
Her case was brought to people’s attention on social media by the man previously known as ‘Supermonk’.
-
Heart attack fears over use of common painkillers: Drugs…
Millionaire scent boss with a nose so sensitive she can…
Cure for chocoholics: Scientists say you need to ‘imagine a…
Probiotics only work for people with atrocious diets – and…
But he has now left the monkhood and is known simply Mr Bhin.
He said: ‘Kwan’s father is mentally challenged and her mom was very, very young when Kwan was born.
Better known as ‘Kwan’, her parents, of Kananchaburi, in Thailand, were also told she had a severe cleft palate
‘It’s not known if this combination caused the baby’s problems but, with only the grandmother working, the family find it hard to get the proper medical treatment.’
Doctors will aim to correct Kwan’s cleft palate before they operate on her limbs when she grows older.
WHAT IS MERMAID SYNDROME?
Sirenomelia, also known as ‘Mermaid syndrome’ is a life-threatening illness, marked by the rotation and fusion of a sufferer’s legs.
The rare congenital deformity causes what looks like a single limb, resembling a fish tail, in the womb.
Medical historian Lindsey Fitzharris, who has a PhD from Oxford University, told MailOnline the condition occurs from a failure of the normal vascular supply, when the umbilical cord fails to form two arteries.
As a result there is not sufficient blood supply reaching the foetus, she said.
The single artery ‘steals’ the blood and nutrition from the lower body, diverting it back up into the placenta.
Suffering malnutrition, the foetus fails to develop two separate limbs.
The condition is extremely rare, affecting one in 100,000 babies, but is 100 times more likely to occur in identical twins.
Babies born with the condition rarely live beyond a few days with more than half of cases resulting in stillbirth.
Currently, she is being treated at Srirat Hospital in Bangkok, meaning her family often have to travel 75 miles just to see her.
Mr Bhin made a donation of 30,000 Thai baht (£700) to help pay for their living costs during the ordeal. A local TV company also donated 10,000 baht (£230) to assist.
Mr Bhin added: ‘This will help the family in the short term but they will need more help as Kwan’s treatment will take a very long time – maybe the people seeing this can also help.’
Medical historian Dr Lindsey Fitzharris previously told the MailOnline that the condition occurs when the umbilical cord fails to form two arteries.
As a result there is not a sufficient blood supply reaching the foetus. This leads to malnutrition, causing the developing child to not be born with two separate limbs.
This comes after a baby astonished doctors in India when it was born with the same condition last May.
Tragically the newborn, from Sahranpur, in Uttar Pradesh, only lived for about ten minutes.
Dr Vandana Arya, 35, a gynaecologist at the hospital who delivered the baby, said at the time: ‘I have never seen a case like this before.
‘The baby was born in a fish-like body, and had its hands spread like fins, which made this case even more unique.’
Share or comment on this article
- ‘When my son came in too, I knew it was over’: Professor…
- Shocking moment woman staggers away with her face in her…
- King of the dance floor! Prince William is captured on…
- EXCLUSIVE – ‘We’ve been drinking vodka and smoking…
- Trump DID pay tax: White House fury as Donald Trump’s tax…
- Get to the back of the queue! Spain warns Sturgeon that…
- Kicked to death by little boys: Flamingo at Czech zoo is…
- Father, 52, gave his ‘cold and calm’ partner, 25, a…
- PICTURED: Mother arrested following manhunt after…
- EXCLUSIVE: Mischa Barton blasts ‘disgusting’ ex-lover for…
- Sturgeon ‘abandons plans to stay in the EU’: First…
- Champion fell-runner is jailed for 18 years for trying to…
- NYPD officer and 9/11 first responder who went viral…
- I don’t care if I AM going the wrong way: Stubborn Land…
- Deadly US snow storm Stella is heading for the UK…
- Restaurant manager left with severe brain injuries after…
- Australian woman badly burned when her HEADPHONES…
- EXCLUSIVE: Revealed – the OTHER blonde pictured partying…
Comments 0
Share what you think
No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts,
or debate this issue live on our message boards.
Close
Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual
Your comment will be credited to your MailOnline persona
Close
Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual
Your comment will be credited to your MailOnline persona