Four-Legged Baby Is Responding Well to Corrective Surgery

A government spokeswoman says a 2-month-old Namibian boy born with four legs is responding well to treatment after undergoing surgery at a South African hospital.

Ester Paulus with Namibia's Ministry of Health and Social Services said Thursday that doctors at the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital in Cape Town performed a nine-hour operation to remove two legs.

Urgent: Should the NSA Spy on Americans? Vote Here Now.

The baby, Andrew Palismwe, is now recovering at the Central State Hospital in Namibia's capital.

Ruthy Mutanimiye, Andrew's mother, told media at the hospital that Andrew had "quickly responded to medication" after a day in intensive care.

The Namibian government paid for the surgery through a fund that assists state patients with no access to private medical care.

Related stories:

Gene Mapping From Womb Spots Mutations, Birth Defects

Gene Mutations Explain Many Heart Defects: Study