Mermaid Girl

The Parens article titled ‘Surgically Shaping Children’ reminded me of a little girl named Shiloh Pepin who is frequently called the “Mermaid Girl.” She was given a television show on Discovery Health. This show captured her daily life struggles showing how she was biologically born with her feet fused together because of a condition known as “sirenomelia.” This deformity is very rare and often ends in death. Born in Maine of 1999 with her lower extremities fused, a missing bladder, uterus, colon, vagina, one partial kidney and one ovary. The doctor’s didn’t think Shiloh would survive and told the parent’s she only had weeks to live at the most. Right now Shiloh is eight years old and going strong thanks to the multiple surgeries she’s had.

There are so many people in the world that suffer from some sort of unknown medical aliment or another. I find it uplifting to know that some of these deformities can be cured. I understand that not everyone needs a cure because for some there is nothing wrong with them. For instance dwarfs can live perfectly ordinary lives by themselves with almost no medical intervention. The Roloff family for instance is proof of that with their four healthy children.

But I think it is important to progress in science and offer medical treatment for those who want it. People like Shiloh Pepin would not be alive today without medical practices. In her case the decision was made by the parent’s in the early stages to keep their daughter alive by taking the risk of surgery. The recent world wide notice of her condition helps to make people aware that the definition of normal is changing and can take many shapes.

To learn more about Shiloh please visit:

http://shilohbenefit.com/

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