Shiloh Pepin from Maine, Portland, USA, who was born with her legs fused together and became widely known in the press and on television, died of a cold that turned into pneumonia
Doctors predicted that a child with sirenomelia (the scientific name for "mermaid syndrome") would not live even four days, but Shila fought for life for ten years.
Shiloh died at the Maine Medical Center on Friday afternoon, a health facility spokesman said. She was hospitalized in critical condition almost a week ago.
The girl, born with "mermaid syndrome" known as sirenomelia, had only one partially functioning kidney and was missing her lower intestine and reproductive organs. When she was born, doctors predicted that she would live for several hours, maximum a few days.
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For some children with sirenomelia, doctors were able to separate the fused legs, but in Shiloh's case, this was impossible.
The girl's father Leslie Pepin said that Shiloh had caught a cold the day before, but because of the drugs that the girl was forced to take constantly, the cold quickly turned into pneumonia.
Scientists know only three girls who managed to survive, despite the terrible diagnosis (usually babies with "mermaid syndrome" live only a few days). Shilo Pepin managed not only to survive, but also to live life to the fullest: she attended a dance class, did a lot of swimming, went to school, went with her mother to amusement parks and even appeared on television. In September, Shiloh was invited to the Oprah Winfrey Show, and several films about her were filmed for the Learning Channel.
Shiloh's parents, Leslie and Elmer, did everything to give their daughter a chance to survive. They turned to pediatric nephrology specialist Matt Hand: the mermaid girl had undergone a kidney transplant. For three years Shiloh was connected to dialysis.
Shiloh participated in many television shows, she was often written about in newspapers, hundreds of sites on the Internet were devoted to her. She inspired many people by her example.
According to Shiloh's mother, her daughter realized that "it was time to leave."
Shilo Pepin will be buried on Wednesday, October 28, next to her stillborn sister. As the close girls said, Shiloh will be buried in a dress that she chose for school photography, writes Seacoast online.
The Shilo Pepin Foundation will continue to exist: with the money raised by it, it is planned to build play and sports grounds for disabled children.