Doctors in Pakistan are fighting to save the life of a baby boy born with six legs because of a rare genetic condition, hospital officials said yesterday.

The infant was born to the wife of an X-ray technician a week ago, Jamal Raza, the director of National Institute of the Child Health in Karachi, told reporters. “It is not one baby actually.

They are two, one of them is premature,” he said.

A doctor at the institute who did not wish to be named said the extra limbs were the result of a genetic disease which would affect only one in a million or more babies.

“The doctors are examining the infant to plan for necessary treatment to save the baby’s life and ensure he lives a normal life,” said a statement from the provincial health department.

Imran Shaikh, the baby’s father who lives in Sukkur, around 450 kilometres north of Karachi, said he was grateful his son was being treated.

“We are a poor family. I am thankful to the government for helping us treating my baby,” he told the media.