The "Human Tail"

Only thirty-three human tails have been reported in the literature, and there is some question how many (if not all) of these represent "pseudotails."  The difference?  A "true" human tail would consist of adipose tissue, skeletal muscle, blood vessels and nerves (no human tail has ever been described containing vertebral bone).  A "pseudotail" is merely a tissue collection (usually a lipoma, teratoma, or myelomeningocele) pouching out at the coccyx with the appearance of a tail (as in the case below).

Human "tails" have been noted to develop in the fetus and then regress.  Case reports note that if the tail persists in the newborn, the finding is very frequently associated with other spinal variations or abnormalities.  Although a tail is certainly not very difficult to detect on a newborn, the history should prompt a careful search of the spine for other spinal abnormalities.

1. Dubrow TJ, Wakym PA, Lesavoy MA. "Detailing the Human Tail" Annals of Plastic Surgery. 20:4 (1988)
2. Alashari M, Torakawa J. "True Tail in a Newborn"  Pediatric Dermatology 12:3 263-266 (1995)