Sirenomelia or Mermaid Syndrome is a very rare congenital deformity in which the legs are fused together, giving the appearance of a mermaid. This condition is found in approximately one out of every 70,000 live births^[1] (about as rare as conjoined twins) and is usually fatal within a day or two of birth because of complications associated with abnormal kidney and bladder development and function. It results from a failure of normal vascular supply from the lower aorta in utero. Sirenomelia is associated with maternal diabetes.

There may be a connection to VACTERL association.

This disorder was formerly thought to be an extreme case of Caudal Regression Syndrome; however, it was reclassified to be considered a separate condition.

Only a handful of patients who did not have the usual kidney and bladder complications have survived this condition, three of them being:

• Tiffany Yorks of the United States (born 1988) underwent successful surgery to correct her rare congenital defect, in order to separate her legs.

• Milagros Cerrón^{[2][3][4][5][6]} of Peru (her name meaning “miracles” in Spanish.) Yorks’s surgeon, Mutaz Habal, worked in an advisory capacity during Cerrón’s operation.

• Shiloh Pepin of Kennebunkport, Maine in the United States ^[7]

• KB Taori, K Mitra, NP Ghonge, RO Gandhi, T Mammen, J Sahu. Sirenomelia Sequence (Mermaid)- Report of Three Cases. Ind J Radiol Imag 2002 12:3:399-401
• Birth Disorder Information Directory – contains many pointers to other references
• http://www.sirenomelia.org/en/

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