Doctors remove ‘parasitic twin’ from Ethiopian girl’s body

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A 17-year-old girl in Ethiopia has been given a new lease on life by doctors, who removed two additional legs and two additional arms from her body.

The girl, Werkitu Dababa, had a condition called a “parasitic twin,” a very rare deformity caused by a twin sibling who does not fully form in the womb.

Describing her condition, Dr. Eric Gokcen, who conducted the surgery, wrote last month that Dababa’s twin had “no head, but instead, has a deformed trunk with undeveloped arms and legs protruding from the girl’s pelvis.”

“This is going to be very difficult surgery, and worldwide, very few surgeons have had any experience at all with these surgeries,” he added. “This type of deformity probably only occurs in less than 1 in a million births. To have the patient present as a teenager has probably never been documented before.”

At a press conference this week following the surgery, Dababa appeared to be in good spirits and said she was happy and relieved to have her ordeal over with.

This video is from MSNBC.com, published on Thursday, July 6, 2012.

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(H/T: International Business Times)