Atlanta ? An Iraqi infant brought to the United States to be treated for severe birth defects has returned to her family in Iraq.

Nine-month-old Noor al-Zahra left Atlanta on Monday, after six months of medical care. Confirmation of her safe return came Wednesday morning, said Christina Porter, spokeswoman for Childspring International, which arranged for her care.

U.S. troops found Noor during a raid on a home in Iraq in December and noticed paralysis and a growth on her back. They arranged medical care in the United States for her condition, spina bifida, in which the backbone and spinal cord do not close after birth.

She had surgery at an Atlanta hospital in January to reposition her spinal cord, and has had other minor procedures to remove fluid buildup in her back and to correct a foot deformity. Doctors say Noor is likely to remain paraplegic but otherwise healthy.