Mother aborts 'mermaid foetus' after learning baby was growing a 'tail'

A scan at six months revealed a woman's unborn baby suffering a rare congenital deformity. Photo / Getty

After learning she was carrying a mermaid-like foetus, a young mother has decided to terminate her pregnancy at six months.

The 23-year-old woman was examined by doctors in Yichang City, in Central China's Hubei Province. Scans revealed her unborn child had developed a "tail"-like growth in place of its two legs.

According to the Daily Mail, reports also claim the foetus did not have a bladder and the liver was stunted in development.

Shiloh Pepin is one of the most documented people to suffer the condition. Photo / Getty

The woman's unborn child was diagnosed with sirenomelia, or "Mermaid Syndrome", a rare congenital deformity where the legs are fused together, giving them the appearance of a mermaid's tail.

Despite having carried the foetus for six months, the woman decided to terminate the pregnancy after specialists estimated her child would be lucky to survive for a few hours after birth.

Mermaid Syndrome is still considered a medical mystery, occuring in one in every 100,000 pregnancies.

One of the world's most documented cases is American child Shiloh Pepin.

Shiloh underwent 150 surgeries before she died in 2009. Photo / Getty

Dubbed "Mermaid Girl" Pepin underwent 150 operations before dying in 2009, aged 10.