Angelina Jolie saved her adopted daughter Zahara Marley from certain death at an Ethiopian orphanage, says a paediatrics expert.

The six-month old baby was diagnosed with salmonella intestinal infection as well as dehydration and malnutrition, according to the Internet Movie Database. The conditions were enough to have led to her death if she had remained back in Africa, said expert Jane Aronson.

Aronson, who specializes in healthcare for infants in developing nations, is convinced that Jolie saved the baby's life based on the evidence she saw.

She said: "Children with those conditions living in orphanages in developing nations can die quickly without proper medical interventions. That would have been Zahara's fate had she not been adopted by Angelina and brought to the US for medical care."

The baby "was very connected to her mother during her hospitalization. It was clear that the love and devotion of her mother along with the antibiotics, intravenous fluids, and formula helped her to recover", she said.