Today in History: World’s youngest confirmed mother gives birth at the age of five

Lina Medina was only five years, seven months, and 21 days old when she gave birth on 14 May 1939.

Originally thought to be a hoax, several doctors have over the years verified the incident based on biopsies, X-rays of the fetal skeleton in her uterus, and photos taken of her by the doctors caring for her.

Lina Medina herself was born in Ticrapo, Castrovirreyna Province, Peru, on 23 September 1933, and is still alive and living in Lima, Peru.

It was not known from the outset that Lina was pregnant, as her parents took her to hospital due to her increasing abdominal size in early 1939.

It was originally believed that she had a tumor, but doctors determined that she was instead in the seventh month of a pregnancy.

She was then taken to Medina by her doctor, Dr Gerardo Lozada, to have other specialists confirm her pregnancy.

A month-and-a-half after the diagnosis, Medina gave birth to a boy by Caesarean section (C-section). She was five years, seven months, and 21 days old, which meant she was the youngest documented person to give birth in medical history.

The C-section was necessary due to her small pelvis and was carried out by Lozada and a Dr Busalleu with a Dr Colareta providing anaesthesia.

During the procedure, doctors noticed that she already had fully mature sexual organs. This was only possible due to precocious puberty, which is basically puberty occurring at an unusually early age.

A detailed report of her case by Dr Edmundo Escomel stated that she had experienced her first menstrual period at the age of eight months and that she had prominent breast development by the age of four.

Medina’s son was born healthy, weighing 2,7kg and was named Gerardo, after her doctor.

Gerardo was initially raised under the impression that Medina was his sister, but found out that she was in fact his mother when he was 10.

To this day, Lina has never revealed who Gerardo’s father is, nor has she told anyone the circumstances surrounding her impregnation. She has turned several members of the media away over the years, preferring to keep the detailed story to herself.

Her father was initially arrested on suspicion of child sexual abuse, but was later released due to lack of evidence.

Gerardo grew up healthy and passed away at the age of 40 in 1979.

Lina eventually married a Raul Jurado in the 1970s and had her second child, named Raul Jurado Jr., in 1972.