Baby With 15 Fingers And 16 Toes

Hong Hong is four months old. At first glance, he may look like any other bouncing bundle of joy — but on closer examination, he’s a little different. Hong Hong was born with 31 fingers and toes. Shortly after his birth in January in China’s Hunan province, doctors diagnosed him with polydactylism.

Polydactyly is relatively common, affecting around one in 1,000 newborns — but in China, it’s even more common and affects 2 in every 1,000. The condition is hereditary and, there’s a 50% chance that parents with polydactyly will have offspring with multiple digits, too. So, it’s not surprising that Hong Hong’s mother suffers from it as well.

Because he’s just an infant, Hong Hong is too young for surgery right now. Also, the family told CNN that docs are saying the surgery could be more complicated than most, in part because it would involve reconstructing thumbs.

The family doesn’t have money to spare, so the $30,000 price tag is a stumbling block as well. At first, they decided to try online fundraising, but after receiving mixed comments, they ended the campaign.