Tail Discovered At Birth, Chinese Baby's Unusual Birth Defect Puzzles Doctors

A Chinese infant was born with a four-inch tail protruding from its back, stunning medical professionals due to the rareness of the condition.

What did the doctor about the baby born with a tail?

Chinese baby born with a tail | Image: AsiaWire

Dr. Li, the deputy chief physician of Paediatric Neurosurgery at Hangzhou Children¡¯s Hospital, identified the condition shortly after the baby's birth.

Dr. Li shared a video on social media displaying the unusual appendage emerging from the baby's lower back, suspecting it resulted from incomplete degeneration.

Subsequent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) confirmed Dr. Li's suspicion of a tethered cord, where the spinal cord is abnormally connected to surrounding tissues, typically at the base of the spine.

How long is the tail?

The soft, boneless protrusion measures approximately 10 cm (3.9 inches) in length. A tethered spinal cord restricts normal movement, potentially causing various neurological issues.

This rare case gained attention on Douyin, the Chinese equivalent of TikTok, with the video garnering over 34,000 likes and more than 145,000 shares since its posting on March 11.

Why is the tail not removed even after mothers urges?

Despite the mother's urging for doctors to remove her son's tail, surgeons opted not to operate due to the connection to the baby's nervous system, which could lead to permanent damage upon removal.

The doctors decided to not remove the tail | Image: Unsplash

This decision echoes a previous case in Guyana, South America, where surgeons successfully removed a tail from a 10-day-old baby last June. That baby boy was born with an abnormal spine, resulting in the presence of a caudal appendage, commonly referred to as a 'tail.'

Scientists posit that the tailbone, or coccyx, is a vestige of our evolutionary past, no longer serving its original purpose but serving as a reminder of our ancestors' tails, which aided in balance while climbing trees.

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