Lina Medina de Jurado (born September 23, 1933) is the youngest confirmed mother in history, having given birth to a son named Gerardo at the age of 5 years, 7 months, and 21 days. Her case remains a medical anomaly and has fascinated the world for decades.
Medical Assessments
Lina Medina was born in Ticrapo, Peru, and her pregnancy was first noticed by her parents when she was just 4 years old. She was brought to a hospital in Pisco, where doctors initially suspected a tumor. However, further examinations revealed that she was pregnant.
Medical assessments indicated that Lina had precocious puberty, a condition in which the body develops sexual characteristics and reproductive capacity at an abnormally young age. Her ovaries were fully mature, and she had regular menstrual cycles from the age of 3.
Pregnancy and Delivery
Lina’s pregnancy progressed normally, and she gave birth to a healthy baby boy, Gerardo, via caesarean section on May 14, 1939. The surgery was performed by Dr. Gerardo Lozada, who named the baby after himself.
Gerardo weighed 2.7 kilograms (6 pounds) at birth and was healthy. He was raised by Lina and her parents and developed normally. Tragically, Gerardo died at the age of 40 from a bone marrow disease unrelated to his unusual birth.
Father’s Identity
The identity of Lina’s son’s father remains unknown. Lina never revealed his name, and there were no known suspects. Some speculated that she may have been sexually abused, but there is no evidence to support this claim.
Later Life
Lina Medina lived a relatively quiet life after giving birth. She married in 1972 and had no more children. She worked as a secretary and lived in Lima, Peru, until her death in 2015 at the age of 82.
Medical Significance
Lina Medina’s case is a medical anomaly that has been studied extensively by scientists. Her precocious puberty and ability to conceive and give birth at such a young age have provided valuable insights into the complexities of human reproductive biology.
Lina Medina’s story is a reminder of the extraordinary capabilities of the human body. Her case continues to fascinate and intrigue people around the world, and it serves as a testament to the resilience and strength of the human spirit.
Additional information
Back in 1939, a girl named Lina Medina gave birth to a healthy baby boy. The only note-worthy detail in this was the girl’s age: she was only five-years-old.
This story is truly a medical marvel — one that is surely hard to believe.
Lina lived in a small Peruvian village located 7,400 feet up in the mountains — the nation’s poorest region.
The girl’s parents initially thought their daughter was suffering from a massive abdominal tumour, but after being examined by doctors in Pisco, Peru, they discovered she was eight-months pregnant.
Medina’s condition certainly came as a surprise to everybody who studied the case, but among pediatric endocrinologists, it wasn’t entirely unthinkable.
About one in every 10,000 children develop a condition known as precocious puberty and Medina was one of those kids.
What is precocious puberty?
Puberty that begins before age 8 in girls and before age 9 in boys is considered precocious puberty.
Throughout the years, many people have called her story a complete hoax, however, X-rays, photos, and doctors’ documentation are proof that this really did happen. The identity of the kid’s father, however, was never determined.
Delivery was by caesarean section because her slim frame was still not adequate in terms of passing a full-sized child through the birth canal.
Many news organisations and newspapers offered large sums of money for the rights to interview and to film the girl but were turned down.
Aside from her record-breaking status as a mother, Medina went on to live an ordinary life in Peru.